TORY 

OCRACV 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK   .    BOSTON  .    CHICAGO   .   DALLAS 
ATLANTA   •    SAN  FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN  &  CO.,  LIMITED 

LONDON   •    BOMBAY   •   CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OF  CANADA,  LTD. 

TORONTO 


THE    STORY 

OF 

DEMOCRACY 

TOLD  FOR  BOYS  AND  GIRLS 


By 

SYDNEY  ELEANOR  JNGRAHAM 


gorfe 

THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 
1922 

A II  rights  reserved 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  A  merica 


J~C  V  33 

JTv 


COPYRIGHT,  1922, 
BY  THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.     Published  November,  1922. 


FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS 

THIS  little  book  approaches  the  study  of  civics  through  the 
medium  of  a  group  of  stories  for  children.  Such  an  at- 
tempt, and  such  an  approach  to  a  difficult  subject  must 
necessarily  meet  with  many  dilemmas  and  limitations.  But  a 
great  need  has  been  felt  for  a  reader  which  would  render  the  study 
of  civics  not  only  attractive,  but  simple  and  easy  to  children.  Chil- 
dren, still  in  the  imaginal  stage,  find  it  very  hard  to  concentrate 
upon  the  generalized  facts  which  fill  textbooks  in  civics.  So  there 
has  been  a  tendency  among  teachers  to  regard  the  subject  as  suit- 
able only  for  high-school  students.  But  a  large  proportion  of  our 
school  children  never  enter  high  school.  They  should  not  leave  the 
public  schools  without  having  received  some  training  in  citizenship. 
It  is  believed  that  the  study  of  democracy  in  evolution  is  the 
most  attractive  to  children  and  the  most  scientific  method  of 
study.  As  citizens,  the  children  must  learn  to  think  in  terms  of 
the  past  and  of  the  future. 

The  title  of  this  book,  The  Story  of  Democracy,  is  not  entirely 
satisfactory,  because  it  might  perhaps  be  misunderstood  to  imply 
that  there  is  only  one  story  of  democracy,  and  that  a  child's  reader 
is  endeavoring  to  tell  it  all,  which  would  be  most  absurd.  But 
it  suggests,  at  least,  the  purpose  to  which  the  book  is  dedicated: 
that  every  American  child  should  be  able  to  picture  the  long 
journey  of  mankind  towards  democracy  as  the  story  of  the  struggle 
for  a  great  cause  in  which  he  himself,  or  she  herself,  will  finally  take 
an  active  part.  "  It  is  rather  for  us  to  be  here  dedicated  to  the  great 
task  remaining  before  us — that  from  these  honored  dead  we  take 
increased  devotion  to  that  cause  for  which  they  gave  the  last  full 
measure  of  devotion." 

Our  laws  of  to-day,  our  principles  of  democratic  citizenship, 
and  our  governmental  machinery  in  the  United  States  form  a  com- 


vi  FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS 

plex  political  organism  which  has  been  built  up  out  of  the  ex- 
perience of  centuries.  It  cannot  be  properly  studied  merely  in 
the  light  of  the  immediate  present,  or  as  an  abstraction  removed 
from  time  and  space.  It  is  a  growth,  like  the  life  of  a  great  tree, 
and  it  is  useless  to  attempt  to  sever  the  leaves  and  branches  from 
the  trunk,  and  from  the  roots  that  lie  under  the  soil. 

To  follow  democracy  through  its  evolution  is,  after  all,  the 
easiest  way  to  understanding  for  children,  because  it  proceeds 
naturally  from  simple  ideas  to  more  complex.  The  discovering 
and  historical  accumulation  of  democratic  principles  have  been 
slow  and  irregular.  Often  the  gain  of  one  century  has  been  lost  in 
the  next.  But  there  has  been  a  gradual,  fumbling  progress,  and 
the  possibility  of  still  greater  progress  lies  unlimited  in  the  future. 

A  choice  had  to  be  made  out  of  the  quantity  of  possible  ma- 
terial, and  so  the  earlier  stories,  with  the  exception  of  the  first, 
have  all  been  drawn  from  significant  phases  in  the  history  of  the 
Western  races  and  of  the  United  States,  because  these  have  a 
direct  bearing  upon  the  development  of  our  American  democracy, 
through  racial  inheritance  and  education.  The  last  five  chapters 
treat  of  citizenship  in  the  United  States  of  to-day. 

It  should  be  explained  to  children,  however,  that  social  progress 
is  by  no  means  the  result  merely  of  time.  The  development  of 
civilization  has  been  most  irregular,  and  there  are  to-day,  scat- 
tered over  the  world,  races  still  living  in  savage — or  primitive — 
in  half-civilized — or  mediaeval — conditions,  representing  various 
layers  of  social  evolution  and  many  different  types  of  government, 
which  are,  in  some  cases,  not  unlike  those  described  in  the  earlier 
chapters  of  this  book. 

This  will  make  clear  why  the  book,  otherwise  chronological  in 
order,  starts  with  an  account  of  Indian  affairs  which  did  not 
occur  until  after  the  events  described  in  Chapter  VI.  Many 
thousands  of  years  have  elapsed  since  our  own  ancestors  (the 
Aryans,  so-called)  lived  as  tribal  savages,  and  almost  no  records 
or  stories  of  their  life  have  come  down  to  us  through  the  ages.  To 
fill  the  gap  caused  by  our  ignorance  of  our  prehistoric  ancestors, 


FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS  vii 

an  Indian  story  has  been  chosen,  because  the  habits  of  all  primi- 
tive peoples  are  similar  and  typical  in  many  essentials,  and  be- 
cause we  have  trustworthy  records  of  the  tribal  organization  of 
the  Indians. 

It  is  believed  that  the  story  method  is  valuable  in  awakening 
the  sympathetic  interest  of  the  children,  in  giving  them  a  sense 
of  the  fullness  of  life,  and  of  the  measure  of  human  forces  and 
sacrifices  involved  in  each  phase  of  the  struggle.  As  it  is  an 
indirect  method  of  teaching,  however,  it  may  be  helpful  to  teachers 
if  the  main  points  to  be  developed  in  each  of  the  stories  are  here 
briefly  indicated.  A  retrospect  is  also  given  in  the  last  chapter,  to 
be  read  by  the  children  themselves. 

The  first  chapter  develops  a  legend  of  tribal  organization  in 
what  may  be  called  the  Stone  Age  of  the  American  Indians.  The 
character  of  At-o-tar-ho  typifies  the  barbarian,  with  his  supersti- 
tions and  brutish  cruelties.  Hi-a-wa-tha  is  a  forerunner  of  civiliza- 
tion, order,  and  progress.  The  spirit  of  purest  democracy,  simple 
and  primeval,  and  the  spirit  of  blind  tyranny  are  woven  together 
in  the  symbolism  of  the  legend.  That  the  Indians  were  a  belated 
race,  doomed  to  fail  before  they  could  develop  their  own  culture, 
adds  tragedy  to  the  beauty  of  Hi-a-wa-tha's  genius.  The  reform 
which  he  introduced  in  regard  to  the  social  control  of  murder  is 
significant  as  a  first  foundation  of  law  and  order.  Incidents  in 
the  first  part  of  the  story  illustrating  the  state  of  barbaric  anarchy 
and  confusion  should  be  noted.  The  later  control  of  the  Iroquois 
chiefs  (whose  authority  became  hereditary  on  the  maternal  side) 
shows  a  tendency  towards  aristocratic  government  in  the  tribe; 
but  the  Indians  had  little  personal  property  and  their  social  life 
was  largely  communistic,  so  that  essential  equality  was  preserved. 
The  story  gives  no  opportunity  to  describe  the  savage  methods 
of  warfare  and  torture.  Most  children,  however,  are  familiar 
with  the  life  of  the  Indians,  and  have  read  of  their  grisly  customs 
of  torturing  and  killing  prisoners  of  war. 

The  second  chapter  gives  a  picture  of  mankind  at  the  next 
stage,  the  dawn  of  civilization.  -The  Homeric  Greeks  know  how  to 


viii  FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS 

tame  animals,  how  to  cultivate  the  earth  by  ploughing,  and  how 
to  forge  metals.  They  are  living  in  the  Age  of  Bronze,  like  the 
Hebrews  of  the  Old  Testament.  The  authority  of  the  tribal  chiefs 
has  now  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  tribal  king,  an  hereditary 
ruler.  At  this  early  stage,  mankind  has  not  yet  learned  the  science 
of  self-government,  but  is  learning  the  necessity  of  obedience  to 
a  central  authority.  Authority  vested  in  a  leader,  the  king,  is  at 
first  more  easily  recognized  than  authority  vested  in  an  abstraction, 
such  as  the  State.  The  king  is  like  the  father  of  a  great  family, 
and  his  palace  is  the  center  of  social  life.  The  people  trade 
with  each  other  and  live  together  in  little  towns,  controlled  by 
simple  laws  of  conduct  instituted  by  the  king. 

To  study  the  first  developments  of  law  at  this  stage,  it 
might  be  very  interesting  to  read  with  the  children  the  story 
of  Moses  and  the  Ten  Commandments.  Early  laws  like  the 
Commandments,  which  deal  with  the  social  relations  of  men, 
are  still  the  basis  of  our  modern  laws,  because  they  answer 
to  the  fundamental  needs  of  human  nature.  It  should  be  noted, 
in  the  story  of  Achilles,  that  Briseis  is  made  a  slave  after  her 
capture.  The  institution  of  slavery  is  established,  and  will  last 
for  thousands  of  years  as  an  obstacle  in  the  path  of  democracy 
and  as  a  great  social  evil.  At  its  very  beginning,  however,  it 
is  actually  a  sign  of  progress.  Prisoners  of  war,  instead  of 
being  tortured  and  put  to  death,  are  merely  enslaved.  The 
development  of  slavery  and  of  personal  property  has  brought  with 
it  the  problem  of  riches  and  poverty,  an  apple  of  discord;  and  the 
simple  equality  of  primitive  life  has  vanished.  The  story  of 
Alcinous  shows  that  class  distinctions  are  now  made,  and  there  is 
danger  that  a  less  generous  king,  rich  and  powerful,  might  become 
a  tyrant  and  oppress  the  poor  by  exacting  too  much  tribute. 

Chapter  III  describes  life  in  Athens  during  the  Age  of  Peri- 
cles. A  Greek  city-state  has  conquered  tyranny  and  developed 
the  science  of  democracy,  the  self-government  of  the  many.  The 
story  leads  up  to  the  Funeral  Speech  of  Pericles,  which  ranks  with 
Lincoln's  Gettysburg  Address  as  one  of  the  greatest  tributes  ever 


FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS  ix 

paid  to  democracy.  The  children  should  learn  to  revere  the 
Hellenic  spirit,  as  revealed  in  such  words,  and  to  admire  Greece 
for  its  great  forward  movement  not  only  in  the  science  of  govern- 
ment, but  also  in  natural  science,  philosophy,  art,  and  literature. 
It  should  be  impressed  on  the  children  that  Athenian  democracy 
was  direct,  not  representative.  The  story  shows  that  the  citizens 
themselves  attended  the  Assembly  and  the  courts  of  law,  giving 
up  about  one  fourth  of  their  time  to  the  public  service.  At  the 
same  time  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  Athenian  democracy  was 
a  very  limited  one  according  to  modern  ideals,  since  women  and 
slaves  were  not  considered  citizens  in  Athens.  They  were  treated 
as  inferiors,  and  suffered  many  hardships  in  consequence. 

Under  the  Roman  Empire  the  principles  of  Athenian  democracy 
seem  forgotten,  although  the  Romans  have  otherwise  borrowed 
much  from  Greek  civilization.  The  two  stories  in  Chapter  IV 
should  be  contrasted.  In  the  first,  The  Triumph  of  Titus,  des- 
potism, militarism,  and  materialism  appear  ironically  victorious 
and  triumphant,  trampling  upon  the  symbols  of  a  great  spiritual 
religion.  The  degradation  of  the  Roman  mob,  as  a  result  of 
autocracy,  should  be  explained.  In  The  Martyrdom  of  Lawrence, 
the  love  of  the  Christians  for  poverty  and  their  attitude  toward 
slavery,  presage  a  new  spirit  of  humanity,  which  will  also  find 
expression  in  the  development  of  Roman  law.  The  underlying 
principle  of  Roman  justice  in  the  last  years  of  the  Empire  is  far 
more  advanced  and  democratic  than  the  principle  of  Athenian  law. 
Even  slaves  are  beginning  to  receive  consideration  as  human 
beings,  and  all  men  and  women,  including  slaves  and  foreigners, 
are  recognized  as  equals  under  the  law  of  nature.  Through  the 
Middle  Ages  and  down  to  the  present  time,  the  great  body  of 
codified  Roman  law  will  be  studied  and  will  endure  as  our  most 
valuable  heritage  from  the  civilization  of  Rome.  Thus  democracy 
gains  a  permanent  victory  in  one  branch  of  government,  while 
suffering  defeat  in  the  other. 

In  the  folk  tale  of  Gunnar  and  Hallgerda,  we  return  to  semi- 
barbarism,  and  read  of  the  daily  life  and  customs  of  the  Icelanders, 


x  FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS 

a  people  closely  related  to  the  primitive  ancestors  of  the  Germanic 
tribes.  We  may  well  feel  proud  of  the  native  democracy  of  the 
folkmeet  which  produced  such  sturdy,  brave,  brisk  men  as  Gunnar 
and  Nyal.  Hallgerda  and  Bergthora,  too,  stand  up  for  their 
rights  in  word  and  in  deed.  For  all  her  wickedness,  there  is 
something  in  Hallgerda  that  we  admire.  Though  she  kills  and 
steals,  she  never  tells  a  lie.  But  she  is  barbaric,  and  there  are 
many  customs  among  the  Norsemen  which  must  seem  ruthless 
and  cruel  to  modern  civilized  people;  witness  the  treatment  of 
thralls,  the  disregard  of  manslaughter,  and  the  frequency  of 
private  combat  as  a  settlement  of  legal  quarrels.  The  story  is 
one  of  the  classics  of  ancient  Norse  literature  and  is  deeply  inter- 
esting because  it  describes  that  turning  point  in  the  development 
of  the  great  Nordic  race  when  the  rule  of  justice  w-as  beginning 
to  replace  the  rule  of  force  in  personal  relations.  The  custom  of 
paying  blood  money  for  a  manslaughter  closely  resembles  the 
custom  of  wampum  giving  among  the  Indians.  What  originally 
arose  as  a  reform,  and  the  foundation  of  law  and  order,  now  ap- 
pears at  a  more  advanced  stage  as  an  inadequate  punishment 
for  such  a  crime  as  murder.  Soon,  when  the  Norsemen  become 
Christians  and  begin  to  study  the  classic  literature  of  Greece  and 
Rome,  blood  feuds  and  blood  money  will  disappear. 

In  the  Chapter  on  the  Middle  Ages,  the  chief  facts  to  be  em- 
phasized are  the  development  of  Parliament  in  England,  the  rise  of 
the  gilds,  the  end  of  serfdom,  and  the  beginnings  of  representative 
government.  In  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion,  the  position  of  the  feudal 
king  as  military  leader  and  his  dependence  upon  Parliament  for 
money  are  significant;  as  are,  in  Leofric  and  Godiua,  the  relation  of  a 
feudal  lord  to  his  tenants,  the  exaction  of  tolls  and  taxes,  the  miser- 
able state  of  the  serf,  and  the  mitigating  influence  of  the  Christian 
religion;  in  Robin  Hood  and  the  Butchers3  Gild,  the  duties  of  the 
Sheriff  and  the  prosperity  of  the  gildsmen;  in  The  Shire  Meeting, 
the  revolt  of  the  serfs  and  the  conditions  of  an  early  election.  In 
spite  of  feudal  monarchy  and  its  many  confusions,  this  age  is  an 
age  of  progress.  The  end  of  serfdom  in  Europe  and  the  develop- 


FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS  xi 

ment  of  representative  government  prepare  the  way  for  a  future 
democracy  purer  and  greater  than  that  of  Athens. 

At  the  conclusion  of  The  Settlement  of  Virginia,  it  is  told  how 
representative  government  was  established  in  the  first  English 
colony  of  North  America,  not  owing  to  the  will  of  the  settlers,  but 
owing  to  the  chance  advent  of  a  liberal  ministry  in  England. 
"  In  the  unfolding  of  these  events/'  says  the  historian  John  Fiske, 
"there  is  poetic  beauty  and  grandeur,  as  the  purpose  of  Infinite 
Wisdom  reveals  'itself  slowly  .  .  .  hasting  not  but  resting  not, 
heedless  of  the  clashing  aims  and  discordant  cries  of  shortsighted 
mortals,  sweeping  their  tiny  efforts  into  its  majestic  current." 

The  Story  of  the  Pilgrims  tells  how  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  struggle 
for  liberty  of  conscience,  freedom  of  speech,  and  freedom  of  the 
press.  They  flee  from  England,  and  migrate  to  America  for  the 
sake  of  religious  and  democratic  ideals.  It  should  be  explained 
why  the  government  of  New  England  was  at  first  a  direct 
democracy,  like  the  Athenian,  and  later  a  representative  democ- 
racy. The  Pilgrims'  ideal  of  democracy  is  a  part  of  their  religion, 
bound  up  with  their  charity,  their  poverty,  and  their  strict 
morality.  All  men  have  equal  rights  in  the  colony,  but  no  one 
dreams,  at  this  time,  that  women  may  ever  have  a  vote  in 
government. 

The  Building  of  the  Nation,  as  related  in  Chapter  IX,  explains 
the  causes  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  the  nature  of  federalism, 
and  the  relation  of  our  state  governments  to  the  National  Govern- 
ment. A  New  England  boy  fights  through  the  Revolution  and 
witnesses  the  failure  of  the  weak  Continental  Congress  in  the  years 
that  follow.  He  becomes  a  Western  pioneer  and  the  money  he 
pays  down  for  his  plot  of  land  in  the  Western  Territory  goes  to 
strengthen  the  finances  of  the  new  National  Government. 

In  connection  with  The  Winning  of  the  West,  allusion  should 
be  made  to  the  history  of  the  particular  state  to  which  the 
children  belong.  The  extract  from  Roosevelt's  autobiography  is 
intended  to  show  how  Roosevelt  applied  the  principles  of  true 
Americanism  in  the  bringing  up  of  his  children. 


xii  FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS 

The  three  following  chapters  are  directly  concerned  with  the 
workings  of  our  machinery  of  government,  and  they  explain 
themselves. 

The  National  Government,  describes  the  work  of  the  President, 
of  the  National  Congress,  and  of  the  Departments  at  Washing- 
ton. The  content  of  the  leaflet  issued  by  the  Children's  Welfare 
Bureau  should  be  studied  sentence  by  sentence,  because  child  wel- 
fare and  education  in  hygiene  concern  all  our  children,  and  are 
fundamental  elements  in  our  modern  citizenship: 

In  connection  with  the  chapter  on  State  and  County  Govern- 
ment, references  should  be  made  to  the  particular  state  and  county 
in  which  the  school  is  situated.  A  Visit  to  a  State  University  reveals 
the  possibilities  of  public  education  in  a  democracy.  The  children 
may  talk  over  their  own  plans  in  regard  to  future  education. 

In  connection  with  City  Government,  if  the  book  is  being  read 
in  cities  other  than  New  York,  comparison  should  be  made  between 
the  services  rendered  by  the  New  York  City  government  and  the 
services  rendered  by  the  particular  city  government  under  which 
the  children  are  living.  The  bad  results  of  overcrowding  might  be 
discussed. 

In  the  concluding  chapter,  a  sketch  is  drawn  of  an  American 
child — John,  a  typical  schoolboy — in  his  relations  to  the  problems 
of  citizenship  that  are  awaiting  him.  When  this  book  was  first 
written,  it  was  planned  to  include  here  a  number  of  stories  by 
various  authors,  dealing  with  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  children 
in  America — stories  of  farm  children,  mountain  children,  negro 
children,  city  children,  and  immigrant  children.  Unfortunately 
these  had  to  be  omitted  for  lack  of  space.  Conditions  in  America, 
however,  are  so  varied  that  any  choice  of  stories  must  seem  in- 
complete. Each  classroom  full  of  children  presents  its  own 
problems,  and  the  teacher  should  compare  John's  outlook  with  that 
of  the  children  before  her,  remembering  the  ideal  of  equal  oppor- 
tunity, and  remembering  that  every  child  who  reads  the  book 
should  become  the  hero  or  heroine  of  this  last  chapter.  The 
realities  of  our  American  social  life  should  not  be  glossed  over  and 


FOREWORD  TO  TEACHERS  xiii 

idealized,  because  such  sentimentality  leads  to  stagnation  or 
retrogression.  If  the  child  can  gain  a  sense  of  his  own  responsibility 
as  a  citizen,  and  the  significance  of  his  place  of  vantage  in  the 
long  upward  climb  of  mankind  towards  democracy  and  justice, 
the  purpose  of  this  book  will  have  been  accomplished. 

Some  of  the  earlier  stories  in  the  book  are  imaginary,  but  the 
descriptions  of  social  life  have  all  been  based  upon  historical 
sources.  Because  it  is  not  customary  to  fill  a  child's  book  with 
bristling  footnotes,  I  should  like  here  to  acknowledge  my  indebted- 
ness to  numerous  authors  whose  past  labors  have  supplied  me 
with  materials  for  my  stories. 

At  the  close  of  the  book  will  be  found  a  pronouncing  vocabulary 
of  all  difficult  names  used  in  the  text. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 

PAGE 

TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT 1 

1.  At-o-tar-ho,  the  Head  Chief  and  Wizard 5 

2.  The  Journey  of  Hi-a-wa-tha 9 

3.  The  Meeting  of  the  Chiefs 14 

4.  The  Founding  of  the  League  of  the  Iroquois 17 

CHAPTER  II 

EARLY  MONARCHY 23 

1.  The  Homeric  Assembly 24 

2.  The  King's  Palace 29 

3.  Generous  Alcinous 36 

CHAPTER  III 

THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS 41 

1.  The  Feast 42 

2.  A  Schoolboy  in  Athens 51 

3.  The  Trial 57 

4.  The  Funeral  Speech  of  Pericles 63 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE , 69 

1.  The  Triumph  of  Titus , 70 

2.  The  Martyrdom  of  Lawrence 82 

CHAPTER  V 

ICELAND;  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD  THING  AND  THE  ALL-THING 93 

1.  Gunnar  and  Hallgerda 95 

2.  Hallgerda  Steals  Cheese  and  Butter 101 

3.  The  Lawsuit 106 

4.  The  Death  of  Gunnar 109 

xv 


xvi  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  VI 

PAGE 
ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES 114 

1.  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion 117 

2.  Leofric  and  Godiva 125 

3.  Robin  Hood  and  the  Butchers'  Gild 133 

4.  The  Shire  Meeting  .    .    . 140 

CHAPTER  VII 

THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA 146 

CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS 161 

1.  The  Puritans  in  England 161 

2.  Holland 167 

3.  The  Arrival  in  America 172 

4.  The  Indians 175 

5.  The  Pilgrims  Give  up  Communism 184 

CHAPTER  IX 

THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION 190 

1.  A  New  England  Village  in  1775 .    .  190 

2.  The  First  Years  of  the  Revolutionary  War 201 

3.  A  Stagecoach  Journey 205 

4.  The  Yorktown  Campaign  .    / 209 

5.  The  Northwest  Territory 215 

6.  The  Federal  Constitution 221 

CHAPTER  X 

AMERICA  TO-DAY 227 

1.  The  Winning  of  the  West  .    .    . 227 

2.  The  Home  Life  of  Theodore  Roosevelt 233 

CHAPTER  XI 

THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT 243 

1.  Washington — A  Visit  to  the  White  House 243 

2.  The  Capitol  . 251 

3.  The  Government  Departments 257 


CONTENTS  xvii 

CHAPTER  XII 

PAGE 
STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT 263 

1.  A  Visit  to  a  State  Capitol 263 

2.  A  State  University .269 

3.  A  County  Court  House 277 

CHAPTER  XIII 

CITY  GOVERNMENT 286 

1.  A  Visit  to  New  York  City 286 

2.  The  City  Hall 296 

3.  The  Work  of  City  Government 298 

CHAPTER  XIV 

AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY 306 

1.  John  and  Lucy 306 

2.  The  Past  and  the  Future    .  .316 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

CHAPTER  I 

TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT 

1.  AT-O-TAR-HO,  THE  HEAD  CHIEF  AND  WIZARD 

2.  THE  JOURNEY  OF  HI-A-WA-THA 

3.  THE  MEETING  OF  THE  CHIEFS 

4.  THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  LEAGUE  OF  THE  IROQUOIS 

While  we  are  reading  the  story  of  democracy,  we  must 
make  great  imaginary  journeys.  To  picture  the  very 
beginnings  and  the  growth  of  government,  we  must  let 
our  thoughts  go  back  through  hundreds  and  thousands 
of  years  and  move  from  one  distant  period  to  another  as 
quickly  as  the  wish  comes  to  us.  We  must  imagine,  too, 
that  we  can  see  the  life  of  whole  peoples  and  countries 
stretched  out  before  us  like  a  map. 

We  first  travel  back  over  five  thousand  years  to  the 
time  when  our  ancestors  were  savage  tribesmen  roaming 
westward  across  Europe. 

The  sky  opens  and  we  see  the  whole  continent  of  Europe 
lying  beneath  us.  It  is  covered  with  unending  forests 
and  vast  stretches  of  waste  land,  edged  with  the  shining 
silver  of  water.  The  dark,  gloomy  forests  are  drenched 
with  rain,  and  grey  mists  hang  over  the  tree  tops. 

Dimly  we  see  below  us,  scattered  through  the  forests, 
little  villages  of  miserable  huts  where  tribes  of  wild  hunters 

1 


2  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

are  moving  to  and  fro.  Because  these  half -savage  creatures 
are  our  own  forefathers  of  the  distant  past,  we  wish  to 
see  them  more  clearly,  and  in  thought  we  sink  down 
through  space  until  we  are  close  to  the  surface  of  the 
earth. 

A  shaft  of  light  breaks  through  the  mist  and  our  eyes 
follow  it  as  it  pierces  the  gloom  of  the  forest.  It  shows 
us  a  savage  hunter  at  work,  sitting  under  a  tree.  He 
is  cutting  up  a  deer  and  ripping  the  skin  with  a  stone 
knife.  A  fly  buzzing  around  him  torments  him;  he 
grunts,  and  his  scalp  twitches  like  the  skin  of  an  animal. 
While  he  is  working,  a  woman  takes  a  prepared  skin 
and  begins  to  sew  it  into  a  rude  garment,  using  a  little 
piece  of  polished  bone  as  a  needle.  There  is  afire  burning 
near  her,  on  which  food  is  being  cooked.  Around  the 
fire  lie  a  jew  rough  pots,  and  tools  made  of  stones  care- 
fully chipped  and  edged.  But  it  is  only  for  a  moment 
that  we  are  able  to  see  these  objects  clearly.  The  ray  of 
light  dies  out,  and  the  mist  of  the  past  once  more  lies 
before  our  eyes,  blotting  out  the  life  below  us.  We  can 
only  imagine  very  dimly  and  vaguely  how  our  ancestors 
lived  in  their  tribal  villages,  and  what  were  their  habits 
and  customs. 

But  though  we  cannot  see  them  clearly,  because  of  our 
ignorance,  we  can  find  out  more  about  the  life  of  other 
savage  tribes,  whose  habits  were  much  the  same  as  theirs. 
As  quickly  as  this  thought  occurs  to  us,  we  come  back 
over  the  centuries,  and  move  across  the  Atlantic  Ocean, 
reaching  the  continent  of  America  when  it  was  inhabited 
only  by  Indians, 


[N.  American  Indian  method  of 
mounting] 


Axe-hammers 

of*  polished  sisme. 


T.  H. 


TOOLS  AND  WEAPONS  SUCH  AS  WERE  USED  BY  OUR  ANCESTORS  AND 
BY  THE  INDIANS 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


Far  inland  there  are  great  bare  prairies,  over  which 
herds  of  buffalo  are  slowly  drifting,  cropping  the  dry 
grass.  Between  the  prairie  and  the  ocean  lie  hundreds 
of  miles  of  wild  green  forest  land,  broken  by  rivers  and 
lakes  that  mirror  the  sky.  Gazing  down  through  bright 


STORY-TELLING  IN  THE  HUT 

patches  of  sunlight  between  black  thunder  clouds  we 
see  here  and  there  the  villages  of  the  Indians.  These 
little  clusters  of  huts  are  like  the  villages  of  our  tribesmen 
ancestors,  and  as  we  watch  the  Indians  hunting  in  the 
woods,  we  can  see  that  they  also  are  using  stone  hatchets 
and  stone  arrowheads. 

The  sun  sets,  and  the  sky  with  its  great  red  clouds  shines, 
then  darkens.     Indian  squaws  come  in  from  the  corn- 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  S 

fields,  and  a  band  of  warriors  return  from  the  woods. 
Soon  the  people  gather  together  in  the  biggest  hut  of  the 
village.  They  feast  on  beaver  meat  and  green  corn,  then 
they  lie  in  a  great  circle  around  the  fire,  roasting  wild 
fruits  and  nuts. 

Now  an  old  Indian  begins  to  pace  up  and  down  the 
hut.  He  talks,  almost  sings,  in  short  sentences  that  rise 
and  fall  suddenly.  He  is  telling  the  story  of  Hi-a-wa-tha, 
the  Iroquois  chief  who  founded  the  Great  Peace,  or  Great 
League  of  the  Iroquois.1 

AT-O-TAR-HO,  THE  HEAD  CHIEF,  MURDERER, 
AND  WIZARD 

Before  the  Great  Peace  of  the  Five  Nations  was 
made,  hatchets  were  crossed,  and  men  were  killing 
each  other.  The  Five  Nations  of  the  Iroquois,  the 
Mohawks,  the  Oneidas,  the  Onondagas,  the  Cayugas, 
and  the  Senecas,  were  hated  by  all  the  other  tribes  of 
Natural  Man. 

But  an  Onondaga  chief  named  Hi-a-wa-tha  began  to 
work  for  the  good  of  his  people.  He  was  weary  of 

1  This  story  is  built  up  from  a  legend  taken  down  by  J.  N.  B.  Hewitt 
in  the  original  Onondaga-Iroquoian  language  from  the  dictation  of 
Ska-na-wa-ti  (John  Buck),  chief  and  firekeeper  of  the  Reserve  of  the 
Six  Nations,  Ontario,  Canada,  in  the  year  1888.  It  has  no  connection 
with  the  story  of  Hiawatha  as  told  by  Longfellow.  Longfellow  follows  a 
collection  of  legends  edited  by  Schoolcraft,  in  which  Schoolcraft  confuses 
the  story  of  Hiawatha  with  the  legends  of  Manabozho,  an  Ojibway 
divinity.  The  real  Hiawatha  was  an  Iroquoian  lawgiver,  who  helped  to 
found  the  League  of  the  Iroquois,  probably  in  the  year  1459. 


6  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

fighting  and  killing  and  burning  and  torturing,  and 
disgusted  with  it  all.  He  sat  down  on  a  log  with  his 
head  bent  low,  thinking,  and  gathered  his  thoughts 
into  a  great  pile.  He  said  to  himself: 

"Now  then,  we  will  gather  all  the  causes  of  war 
into  a  bundle  and  throw  them  away  from  the  earth. 
We  will  make  a  Great  Peace  between  the  Five  Na- 
tions of  the  Iroquois.  The  Great  Peace  will  grow 
like  a  pine  tree,  and  we  will  rest  in  the  shadow  of  its 
leaves,  because  their  shadow  will  be  pleasant  and  beau- 
tiful. Other  nations  also,  when  they  see  the  Great 
Peace,  will  like  it  and  desire  it,  so  that  at  last  all  the 
nations  of  Natural  Man  will  live  together  in  peace  and 
happiness,  undisturbed  by  the  shedding  of  blood." 

Hi-a-wa-tha  wished  to  talk  over  this  matter  with 
his  people  at  a  council  fire,  but  though  the  Onondagas 
unbanked  many  council  fires,  they  failed  utterly  to  do 
any  business.  At-o-tar-ho,  the  old  head  chief,  murderer 
and  witch  doctor,  brought  all  their  plans  to  nothing. 

At-o-tar-ho  was  the  enemy  of  Hi-a-wa-tha,  and  had 
killed  the  two  sons  of  Hi-a-wa-tha.  The  Onondagas 
lived  in  terror  of  him  because  he  was  a  great  war  chief 
and  witch  doctor,  but  the  truth  was  that  he  had  gone 
quite  mad.  His  name  means  "the  Entangled."  He 
was  crazy.  He  put  living  snakes  into  his  hair,  and  a 
big  serpent  was  twisted  around  his  naked  body. 

The  people  said  to  Hi-a-wa-tha:  "If  we  make  At-o- 
tar-ho  angry,  and  he  flies  into  a  temper,  he  will  work 
all  kinds  of  horrible  spells  upon  us.  You  speak  to  him 
privately." 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  7 

"I  cannot  speak  to  him  privately,"  said  Hi-a-wa-tha. 
"He  hates  me  and  is  my  enemy." 

So  Hi-a-wa-tha  sent  his  messengers  running  through 
all  the  villages  of  the  Onondagas,  calling  all  the  people 
to  a  council  fire.  The  people  came  together  paddling 
their  canoes  along  the  creeks  from  all  parts.  The  old 
men  came,  the  warriors,  and  the  women.  The  women 
brought  with  them  their  children.  The  lake  of  the 
Onondagas  was  filled  with  canoes  bumping  into  each 
other,  so  great  was  the  crowd  of  the  people. 

But  At-o-tar-ho  came  to  the  chosen  place  of  meeting 
before  all  the  others.  He  sat  down  facing  the  lake. 
There  he  sat.  He  wished  to  frighten  the  poor  fools  in 
some  way  and  prevent  the  council-meeting.  Suddenly 
he  saw  a  big  black  thunder  cloud  rising  up  over  the  lake, 
and  it  was  a  stroke  of  luck  for  him.  He  shouted  out  in 
a  loud  voice: 

"Now  then,  hasten.  Hurry,  or  you  will  all  soon  be 
destroyed.  See,  a  wind  is  coming.  I  prayed  for  it.  A 
great  storm  is  going  to  burst.  It  is  my  medicine,  and 
it  will  cause  you  all  to  be  drowned." 

The  people  looked  up  and  saw  the  black  cloud  hang- 
ing over  them,  and  a  hurricane  of  wind  arose.  The 
lake  began  to  boil  with  white  waves.  The  people  all 
believed  in  black  magic,  and  they  grew  very  nervous 
and  timid.  The  men  paddled  too  fast  in  their  excite- 
ment, the  women  trembled,  and  the  little  children 
jumped  about  and  screamed  in  terror  at  the  pitching 
and  tossing  of  the  boats.  Many  of  those  who  had  not 
landed  upset  their  canoes  and  were  drowned.  The  rest 


8  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

returned  in  a  panic  to  their  villages,  with  their  hair 
standing  on  end,  and  saying  that  the  storm  had  been 
caused  by  the  powerful  medicine  of  At-o-tar-ho.  The 
chiefs  turned  pale  and  said  to  themselves: 

"At-o-tar-ho  is  in  a  bad  temper.  Again  he  has 
defeated  our  plans." 

By  and  by  Hi-a-wa-tha  appointed  another  place 
and  another  time  for  a  council. 

When  the  time  had  come  for  the  meeting,  a  great 
crowd  of  people  met  together  at  the  chosen  place,  and 
they  set  up  little  huts  to  sleep  in,  for  the  council  fire 
was  to  burn  for  many  days.  Hi-a-wa-tha  came  to  the 
meeting  with  his  daughter,  a  beautiful  young  red 
squaw,  the  only  child  that  was  left  to  him.  When  the 
women  began  to  gather  wood  for  their  fires,  the  daugh- 
ter of  Hi-a-wa-tha  went  into  the  forest  with  them. 
As  she  was  coming  out  of  the  forest,  laden  with  wood, 
At-o-tar-ho  appeared,  and  looked  at  her.  But  she 
would  have  nothing  at  all  to  do  with  him,  and  this 
drove  him  wild,  mad  as  he  was. 

"Now  then,  look  up,"  he  shouted  in  a  loud  voice. 
All  eyes  now  looked  up,  and  the  people  gazed  with 
curiosity  at  a  strange  and  beautiful  bird  that  was  flying 
down,  to  the  place  where  Hi-a-wa-tha's  daughter  was 
gathering  wood.  At-o-tar-ho  told  one  of  his  men  to 
shoot  at  the  bird  with  an  arrow,  and  the  bird  fell. 
The  people  all  ran  together  towards  it,  and  in  the 
stampede  and  confusion,  At-o-tar-ho's  spies  threw  down 
the  daughter  of  Hi-a-wa-tha  and  trampled  on  her. 
She  lay  still,  and  blood  came  out  of  her  mouth.  Then 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  9 

her  face  became  twisted,  and  she  was  dead.  The 
people  around  her  jumped  up  and  cried,  but  she  re- 
mained dead. 

Hi-a-wa-tha  in  his  great  sorrow  cried  out,  "It 
has  gone  badly  with  me;  all  my  children  are  now  gone 
from  me.  They  have  been  destroyed  by  At-o-tar-ho, 
and  he  has  defeated  my  plans." 

Again,  in  their  fear,  the  people  left  the  place  of  coun- 
cil. Hi-a-wa-tha  seated  himself  on  the  ground,  and 
wrapped  his  head  in  a  cloak  of  skins.  After  a  long  time, 
he  rose  up  and  said: 

"  My  children  are  gone  from  me  now  and  I  am  lonely 
here.  I  must  go  abroad  among  other  peoples.  I  will 
start  now.  I  will  split-the-sky."  (He  meant  that  he 
would  go  south.) 

THE  JOURNEY  OF  HI-A-WA-THA 

And  so  Hi-a-wa-tha  set  out  on  his  journey.  He 
went  into  the  forest,  and  going  directly  south,  he 
crossed  the  Onondaga  Mountain.  As  he  traveled  he 
came  to  a  lake  and  saw  a  flock  of  ducks  floating  on  the 
water.  The  ducks,  quacking  loudly,  rose  from  the 
water  and  flew  across  to  the  opposite  shore  of  the  lake. 
All  animals  were  brothers  to  Hi-a-wa-tha,  and  he 
thought  the  ducks  were  talking  to  him  in  their  magic 
language.  He  cried  out  to  them,  "You  floating  boats, 
what  are  you  saying  to  me?"  He  followed  the  ducks, 
and  began  to  dig  in  the  mud  of  the  lake  shore.  There  he 
found  a  store  of  little  bright-colored  shells,  which  took 


10  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

his  fancy.1  "These  little  things  are  very  beautiful," 
he  said  to  himself,  "and  they  must  be  magic  since  I 
found  them  with  the  help  of  the  ducks."  So  he  put 
them  in  his  bag. 

Now  he  built  for  himself  a  white  canoe  of  birch  bark, 
and  followed  a  river  towards  the  rising  sun.  Early 
one  morning  he  reached  a  village  of  the  Mohawks 
and  went  into  the  long-house  where  Dek-a-na-wi-dah, 
one  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Mohawks,  lived  with  his  seven 
brothers  and  his  sisters  and  their  families.  The  long- 
house  was  made  of  poles  covered  with  bark.  All  these 
Indians  lived  in  large  family  parties,  and  though  there 
was  some  disputing  among  the  women,  and  a  good  deal 
of  squabbling  among  the  children,  yet  it  was  a  lively, 
companionable  sort  of  life,  and  it  seemed  very  natural 
in  those  days. 

Dek-a-na-wi-dah,  the  man  of  the  long-house,  came 
out  and  said  to  Hi-a-wa-tha:  "My  poor  younger 
brother,  Hi-a-wa-tha,  what  bad  thing  has  happened 
to  you,  that  you,  a  great  chief,  should  have  to  travel 
and  run  like  this?" 

Hi-a-wa-tha  said :  "At-o-tar-ho  is  mad.  He  is  angry 
and  crazy.  He  destroyed  my  three  children,  and  then 
I  came  away,  for  I  was  troubled.  I  split-the-sky  in  my 
journey." 

Dek-a-na-wi-dah  said  kindly  to  Hi-a-wa-tha,  "Now 
then,  you  must  stay  here.  You  must  live  in  this 
house,  and  everything  we  have  will  be  yours  also." 

1  Little  shells,  called  wampum,  were  considered  very  precious  by  the 
Indians. 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT 


11 


In  the  house  there  were  long  couches  built  around  the 
walls,  where  the  many  relations  of  Dek-a-na-wi-dah 
spread  their  mats  of  skins.  Along  the  middle  of  the 
hut  from  one  end  to 
the  other  there  were 
seven  fires,  and  each 
fire  was  used  by  two 
families.  Dek-a-na- 
wi-dah  took  in  Hi-a- 
wa-tha,  spread  a  mat 
for  him,  and  let  him 
lie  down,  for  he  was 
tired  out.  Then  he 
set  a  wooden  bowl  of 
delicious  beaver  meat 
before  him,  saying, 
"If  you  are  hungry, 
here  is  meat  for  you, 
which  you  may  eat 
if  you  like." 

Hi-a-wa-tha  told 
Dek-a-na-wi-dah  that 
he  was  weary  of  killing  and  fighting,  and  disgusted  with 
it  all,  and  that  he  wanted  to  make  a  Great  Peace  be- 
tween the  five  nations  of  the  Iroquois.  So  Dek-a-na-wi- 
dah  called  a  council  of  the  Mohawks,  and  the  chiefs 
talked  over  the  matter  for  several  days.  They  said,  yes, 
they  were  willing  to  join  in  a  Great  Peace,  but  only  if 
all  the  other  nations  of  the  Iroquois  would  join  too. 
Messengers  were  sent  running  to  the  Oneidas,  the 


A  CHIEF  WEARING  THE  HORNS  OF  POWER 

These  were  the  sign  of  his  position. 


12  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Cayugas,  and  the  Senecas,  and  after  the  passing  of 
several  winters,  all  these  nations  gave  their  consent  to 
the  plan.  Their  chiefs  came  to  visit  Dek-a-na-wi-dah, 
and  took  counsel  with  him.  In  the  end,  at  a  council- 
meeting,  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  asked  Hi-a-wa-tha: 

"Have  you  anything  that  might  help  us  in  our 
work?" 

Hi-a-wa-tha  lifted  up  his  finger  and  said,  "Aha,  I 
have  some  very  precious  magic  shells.  We  must  con- 
quer At-o-tar-ho's  medicine  with  stronger  medicine 
of  our  own."  And  he  brought  out  his  wampum  strings. 
He  had  thirteen  strings  of  white  wampum  hung  on  a 
pole.  Each  string,  so  he  explained,  was  a  thought,  or 
matter,  concerning  the  Great  Peace.  He  gave  the 
Thirteen  Thoughts  to  the  chiefs.  They  gazed  at  this 
wealth  of  wampum  and  were  greatly  pleased  over  it, 
saying,  "Ah,  we  will  use  these  Thirteen  Thoughts  in 
our  work.  They  will  be  of  great  help  to  us." 

Then  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  said:  "Now  then,  it  remains 
for  us  to  visit  At-o-tar-ho,  for  the  Onondagas  must  be 
persuaded  to  join  in  the  Great  Peace.  A  Great  Peace  is 
of  no  use  unless  everyone  joins  in;  that  is  clear.  First, 
we  must  cure  At-o-tar-ho  of  his  madness.  His  mind  is 
crazy  and  twisted.  We  must  straighten  out  his  mind,  so 
that  he  may  have  again  the  mind  of  a  human  being." 

The  chiefs  took  counsel  together,  and  Hi-a-wa-tha 
warned  them  that  if  they  wished  At-o-tar-ho  to  join 
in  the  Great  Peace,  they  must  offer  to  make  him  the 
head  chief  of  the  league,  and  the  Onondagas  the  leading 
nation.  "At-o-tar-ho  is  a  very  masterful  man,"  said 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  13 

Hi-a-wa-tha,  "and  he  will  never  join  in  a  Great  Peace 
unless  he  can  be  the  head  of  it." 

"Well,  if  there  is  nothing  else  to  be  done/'  said  the 
chiefs,  who  were  one  and  all  afraid  of  a  madman,  "let 
us  decide  to  do  this." 

When  this  had  been  decided,  Dek-a-na-wi-dah 
asked,  "Who  will  come  with  me  to  seek  the  smoke  of 
At-o-tar-ho?" 

Hi-a-wa-tha  said,  "I  will  come,"  and  one  of  the 
Oneida  chiefs  said,  "I  place  myself  like  a  great  tree 
trunk  in  the  path  of  Dek-a-na-wi-dah,  so  that  what- 
ever he  intends  to  do,  he  will  find  me  in  his  path, 
lying  there,  so  that  he  must  take  me  with  him  on  his 
journey." 

No  one  else  spoke,  and  so  the  three  chiefs  started 
off  on  their  journey  to  the  mountain  of  the  Onondagas. 

After  a  long  journey,  they  came  to  a  village  and  saw 
smoke  rising  like  a  pillar  to  the  sky.  Hi-a-wa-tha  said 
to  his  companions,  "We  are  now  at  our  journey's 
end,  for  that  smoke  is  the  smoke  of  At-o-tar-ho's  long- 
house." 

The  three  men  went  towards  the  house,  and  upon 
entering  the  door  they  asked  the  people  who  were 
gathered  there  if  they  might  speak  with  At-o-tar-ho. 
The  people  in  amazement  put  their  fingers  to  their 
lips  and  whispered,  "tch,  tch,  tch"  meaning  that  the 
visitors  should  be  silent,  for  no  one  was  allowed  to 
speak.  Then  they  pointed  towards  At-o-tar-ho.  The 
three  chiefs  looked,  and  at  first  they  saw  nothing  but 
darkness  in  the  long-house.  Then  they  were  struck 


14  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

dumb  by  the  sight  of  At-o-tar-ho,  for  he  hardly  seemed 
a  man.  His  madness  had  grown  on  him,  and  he  looked 
like  a  beast.  His  head  was  bent  low,  like  the  head  of  a 
bull  buffalo,  and  his  eyes  were  rolling.  The  nails  of  his 
fingers  were  long  like  the  claws  of  a  turtle,  and  the  nails 
of  his  toes  were  like  bear's  claws.  There  were  snakes 
entangling  his  hair,  and  a  big  serpent  was  twisted  round 
his  naked  body. 

The  sight  of  him  was  so  horrifying  that  the  chiefs 
quickly  left  the  house,  saying,  "At-o-tar-ho  is  not  hu- 
man. He  is  a  wizard  and  bestial." 

When  they  were  outside,  they  wondered  how  they 
could  deal  with  him.  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  thought  over 
the  matter  and  said:  "We  must  straighten  out  his 
mind,  so  that  he  may  have  again  the  mind  of  a 
human  being.  Perhaps  the  sound  of  our  voices  sing- 
ing old  songs  will  cure  his  madness.  Let  us  prepare 
a  council  fire  and  sing  the  old  song  that  is  called 
At-the-Wood's-Edgc." 

THE  MEETING  OF  THE  CHIEFS 

So  the  three  chiefs  walked  a  little  distance  from 
At-o-tar-ho's  house,  to  the  edge  of  the  forest,  and  there 
they  kindled  a  council  fire  and  sang  the  song  that  was 
sung  when  chiefs  visited  each  other: 

Here  we  shall  kindle  a  council  fire, 
Here  at  the  wood's  edge. 
Here  we  shall  comfort  each  other 
With  very  few  words. 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  15 

We  still  see  their  footprints, 
Those  of  our  forefathers,  and  even  now 
Almost  might  the  smoke  have  been  seen 
Where  together  we  smoked. 

When  they  had  sung  this,  they  returned  to  At-o- 
tar-ho's  house,  and  the  people  who  were  standing  at 
the  door  said  that  a  change  had  come  over  At-o- 
tar-ho's  face  when  he  heard  the  singing.  It  became 
untwisted. 

So  the  three  chiefs  plucked  up  courage  and  again 
entered  the  long-house.  The  people  whispered,  "tch, 
tch,  tch,"  to  silence  them,  but  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  went 
forward  carrying  the  wampum  pole,  and  saying: 

"We  are  here  now,  looking  for  At-o-tar-ho,  and 
bringing  with  us  Thirteen  Thoughts,  that  we  wish  to 
give  him." 

Then  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  sang  an  old  song  of  greeting 
which  was  called  the  Six  Songs: 

The  war  chiefs,  I  come  to  greet  them  again, 

The  body  of  warriors,  I  come  to  greet  them  again, 

The  body  of  women,  I  come  to  greet  them  again, 

And  the  little  children  that  are  running  around, 

Also  the  little  ones  that  are  creeping  on  the  ground, 

And  those  that  are  tied  to  the  cradle-boards, 

I  come  to  greet  them  again. 

At-o-tar-ho  seemed  to  listen  to  this  song,  and  even 
raised  his  head.  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  cried  out  loudly, 
"We  are  looking  for  At-o-tar-ho,  the  real  mind  of 
At-o-tar-ho!  The  mind  that  is  now  in  his  body  is  not 
the  mind  of  a  human  being/' 


16  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

At  the  sound  of  his  name  called  out,  At-o-tar-ho 
shuddered  and  his  eyes  turned  white  and  empty. 

Dek-a-na-wi-dah  went  up  and  stood  very  close  to 
him,  saying,  "We  wish  to  remake  and  straighten  out 
your  mind;  and  your  body,  too,  we  should  like  to  make 
it  natural." 

Passing  his  hands  over  At-o-tar-ho's  feet,  Dek-a- 
na-wi-dah  cut  off  the  long  toenails.  Then  he  gave 
At-o-tar-ho  a  string  of  wampum,  which  seemed  to 
please  him.  Passing  his  hands  over  At-o-tar-ho's 
hands,  he  cut  off  the  long  finger  nails.  Then  he  said, 
"Your  head  shall  be  like  that  of  a  human  being,"  and 
he  killed  the  snakes  that  entangled  At-o-tar-ho's  hair. 
"One  thing  remains,"  he  cried,  "and  that  is  to  kill 
the  serpent  that  is  twisted  round  your  body,  the  root 
of  your  madness,"  and  he  cut  off  the  big  serpent.  As 
he  did  these  things,  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  gave  strings  of 
wampum  to  At-o-tar-ho,  until  he  had  given  him  the 
thirteen  strings  which  were  Hi-a-wa-tha's  Thirteen 
Thoughts  concerning  the  Great  Peace.  After  this  he 
made  signs  as  if  he  were  washing  the  couch  on  which 
At-o-tar-ho  was  sitting,  and  he  sang: 

Every  day  you  are  losing  your  men, 
The  warriors,  the  women  and  the  children, 
So  that  in  the  midst  of  blood  you  are  sitting. 
Let  us  wash  off  the  blood  marks  from  your  seat. 

Slowly  the  face  of  At-o-tar-ho  became  untwisted,  he 
sat  upright  and  it  was  clear  that  a  change  had  come 
over  him.  He  looked  once  more  like  a  human  being. 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  17 

THE  FOUNDING  OF  THE  LEAGUE  OF  THE  IROQUOIS 

Then  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  called  to  Hi-a-wa-tha  and 
the  Oneida  chief,  and  the  three  chiefs  sat  with  At-o-tar- 
ho.  They  gathered  their  thoughts  into  a  big  heap  of 
thought-stuff,  and  laid  the  heap  in  front  of  At-o-tar-ho. 
Hi-a-wa-tha  said: 

"  Now  then,1  are  there  not  nights  when  there  is  danger 
that  one  man  may  kill  another,  and  so  cause  warfare 
between  nations?  It  is  this  matter  of  killing  and 
shedding  blood  that  we  must  set  right,  so  that  all  the 
nations  of  Natural  Man  on  the  earth  may  live  together 
in  peace,  undisturbed  by  the  shedding  of  blood. 

"Now  then,  when  a  man  has  been  killed,  the  body 
should  be  hidden  away  among  fallen  trees.  If  a  dead 
body  is  left  out  so  that  all  our  people  can  see  it,  they 
will  be  surprised  and  startled;  and  they  will  ask  what 
has  happened,  and  they  will  keep  on  asking  until  they 
have  found  out.  And  they  will  at  once  be  upset  and 
disturbed  in  mind.  Perhaps  they  will  get  excited  and 
go  out  on  the  warpath.  To  prevent  this  trouble,  when 
a  dead  body  is  found,  it  should  be  hidden  away.  And 
when  this  has  been  done,  we  should  choose  some 
men  as  mourners  for  the  tribe.  These  men  will  go  to 
the  house  of  the  dead  man's  relations  carrying  presents 
of  wampum — some  short  strings.  These  men  will 
enter  the  house,  stand  by  the  fire,  and  speak  a  few 
words  of  comfort  to  the  relations  of  the  dead  man. 
When  the  relations  have  received  presents  of  wampum, 

1<<Now  then"  is  a  common  introductory  expression  in  Indian  speeches. 


18  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

they  will  feel  comforted.  They  will  not  think  of  revenge 
any  more,  but  will  go  on  quietly  as  if  nothing  had  hap- 
pened. We  should  give  twenty  presents  for  a  dead  man, 
and  more  for  a  woman,  because  women  are  helpless.  In 
this  way,  by  comforting  the  relatives  of  the  injured,  we 
shall  gather  up  the  causes  of  war  and  throw  them  away. 

"Now  then,  when  we  have  done  this,  we  must  make 
a  Great  Peace,  or  a  Great  League,  between  the  nations 
of  the  Iroquois,  and  a  council  fire  will  be  lit  which  will 
be  the  council  fire  of  the  Great  Peace. 

'The  five  nations  of  the  Iroquois  will  form  them- 
selves into  one  body.  They  will  take  one  another  by 
the  hands  and  arms,  they  will  have  their  minds  in  one 
place,  and  they  will  have  but  one  head,  one  tongue,  and 
one  blood  in  their  bodies.  They  will  live  together  in 
peace.  Council  fires  will  be  lit  for  other  nations  also — 
for  the  Cherokees,  the  Hurons,  and  the  Wyandots — 
for  all  the  people  of  the  earth.  In  the  end  all  the  na- 
tions of  Natural  Man  will  live  together  in  peace  and 
happiness,  undisturbed  by  the  shedding  of  blood. 

"  We  will  gather  up  the  causes  of  war  and  tie  them 
into  a  bundle.  Then  we  will  uproot  a  tall  pine  tree, 
making  a  very  deep  hole  in  the  earth,  and  at  the  bottom 
of  this  hole  there  will  be  a  swift  underground  current  of 
water.  Into  the  current  we  will  throw  all  the  causes  of 
war.  And  when  we  have  done  this,  we  will  set  back 
the  great  tall  pine  tree  in  its  place. 

"The  pine  tree  will  grow  and  grow,  and  it  will  be  the 
Great  Peace.  We  will  rest  in  the  shadow  of  its  leaves, 
because  their  shadow  will  be  pleasant  and  beautiful.  All 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT 


19 


the  nations  will  look  at 
the  Great  Peace,  and 
they  will  like  it  and 
desire  it.  Never  again 
shall  we  have  to  live 
in  fear. 

"The  great  tree  will 
put  forth  a  Great 
White  Root,  going  to- 
wards the  sunrising 
and  the  sunsetting, 
and  splitting-the-sky. 
This  Great  White 
Root  will  be  the  law 
of  Natural  Man.  It 
may  be  that  after  the 
passing  of  time,  some 
man  may  come  who 
will  see  this  root,  and 
then  lift  his  hatchet 
and  strike  at  it.  If  he 
does  that,  blood  will 
flow  from  the  root 
and  we  shall  all  feel 
it.  We  shall  know 
that  the  man  who  has 
struck  his  hatchet 
into  the  Root  does  not 


SPECIMENS  OF  AMERICAN  INDIAN  PICTURE- 
WRITING  (after  Schoolcraft) » 

No.  1,  painted  on  a  rock  on  the  shore 
of  Lake  Superior,  records  an  expedition 
across  the  lake,  in  which  five  canoes  took 
part.  The  upright  strokes  in  each  indi- 
cate the  number  of  the  crew,  and  the  bird 
represents  a  chief,  "  The  Kingfisher." 
The  three  circles  (suns)  under  the  arch  (of 
heaven)  indicate  that  the  voyage  lasted 
three  days,  and  the  tortoise,  a  symbol  of 
land,  denotes  a  safe  arrival.  No.  2  is  a 
petition  sent  to  the  United  States  Con- 
gress by  a  group  of  Indian  tribes,  asking 
for  fishing  rights  in  certain  small  lakes. 
The  tribes  are  represented  by  their  to- 
tems, martens,  bear,  manfish,  and  cat- 
fish, led  by  the  crane.  Lines  running  from 
the  heart  and  eye  of  each  animal  to  the 
heart  and  eye  of  the  crane  denote  that 
they  are  all  of  one  mind;  and  a  line  runs 
from  the  eye  of  the  crane  to  the  lakes, 
shown  in  the  crude  little  "map"  in  the 
lower  left-hand  corner. 


1  Picture  and  legend  from   page   225  of  The  Outline  of  History  by 
H.  G.  Wells;  The  Macmillan  Company. 


20  THE  STORY  OP  DEMOCRACY 

desire  to  receive  the  Great  Law.  We  will  look  and  see 
the  back  of  this  evil  man  as  he  runs  away,  and  before 
he  has  gone  very  far,  some  bad  thing  will  happen  to  him. 
There  is  no  doubt  about  that. 

"There  must  be  only  one  blood  in  us.  If  one  of  us  has 
to  bleed  on  account  of  some  deed,  it  must  happen  to  all 
alike,  we  must  all  likewise  bleed.  This  is  a  part  of  our 
Great  Law.  Again  we  must  share  the  animals  on  which 
we  need  to  live.  This  is  another  part  of  the  Great  Law.1 

"The  Great  Law  and  the  Great  Peace  will  be  upheld 
by  the  chiefs,  and  the  chiefs  will  wear  their  horns. 
Each  nation  of  the  Iroquois  will  send  a  number  of 
chiefs  to  sit  round  the  council  fire  of  the  Great  Peace. 
The  Mohawks  will  send  nine  chiefs;  the  Oneidas,  nine; 
the  Cayugas,  ten;  the  Senecas,  eight;  and  the  Onon- 
dagas,  fourteen.  The  head  chief  of  the  Onondagas, 
At-o-tar-ho,  will  be  the  fire  keeper.  When  the  chiefs 
are  wearing  their  horns,  they  will  be  different  from 
other  men,  so  that  people  can  say,  'These  are  chiefs.' 

"Now  then,  this  will  be  the  roll  call  of  the  chiefs  of 
the  Great  Peace:2 

1  The  hunting  grounds  of  an  Iroquois  tribe  were  shared  equally  by  all 
the  warriors,  and  the  cornfields  which  belonged  to  the  tribe  as  a  whole 
were  cultivated  by  the  women  as  a  group. 

2  The  Great  League  of  the  Iroquois  did  not  bring  universal  peace 
among  all  the  Indians,  as  its  founder  hoped.    However,  for  three  hundred 
years  it  bound  together  the  tribes  of  the  Iroquois  in  perfect  friendship, 
making  them  far  stronger  than  any  other  tribes  because  of  their  united 
government.    Some  treaties  of  peace  were  made  with  other  tribes,  but 
after  the  coming  of  the  white  man,  the  Indians  fought  bitterly  among  them- 
selves; and  the  League  of  the  Iroquois,  by  its  very  strength  and  union,  was 
a  terrible  instrument  of  war,  dealing  death  anc*  destruction  to  its  enemies. 


TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT  21 

Hail,  hail,  hail,  hail!   Now  listen, 

You  who  completed  the  work.    Hail,  hail, 

The  Great  Peace! 

Now  then, 

You  who  are  rulers, 

You,  At-o-tar-ho, 

Continue  to  listen; 

And  you,  Dek-a-na-wi-dah, 

Continue  to  listen, 

Hail,  hail, 

You  who  are  rulers; 

And  you,  Hai-yo-went-ha,  [Hi-a-wa-tha] 

Continue  to  listen, 

You  who  are  ruler;  [and  so  on  till  all  the  chiefs  are 

named] 

That  is  the  roll  of  you, 
You  who  were  joined  in  the  work, 
You  who  completed  the  Great  Peace, 
Continue  to  listen." 

The  story  is  ended.  The  hunters  grunt  approval,  then 
they  yawn,  and  lie  down  to  sleep  on  their  low  couches, 
wrapping  themselves  in  skins.  The  fire  has  sunk  very 
low.  We  pass  out  into  the  night  and  move  eastward. 

TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  At-o-tar-ho  represents  the  barbarism 
of  the  past;  Hi-a-wa-tha  is  a  forerunner  of  civilization.  Tell  why 
each  of  these  statements  is  true. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  are  the  chief  differences  between  our  life  of  to-day 
and  the  life  of  savages? 

2.  What  incidents  in  the  first  part  of  the  story  illustrate  the 
lack  of  law  and  order  among  the  Indians? 


22  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

3.  What  would  happen  nowadays  to  a  man  who  acted  like 
At-o-tar-ho  ? 

4.  What  was  the  difference  of  attitude  between  At-o-tar-ho 
and  Hi-a-wa-tha  as  chiefs  of  the  tribe? 

5.  Who  attended  the  council  fires  of  the  Onondagas  ? 

6.  How  was  an  Iroquois  long-house  built? 

7.  How  did  the  family  of  Dek-a-na-wi-dah  live? 

8.  Explain  why  there  were  no  poor  men  or  rich  men  among 
the  Indians. 

9.  How  did  Hi-a-wa-tha  propose  to  put  an  end  to  warfare? 

10.  What  reform  did  Hi-a-wa-tha  suggest  in  regard  to  murder? 
What  is  done  nowadays  when  a  murder  has  been  committed? 

11.  Repeat  sayings  of  Hi-a-wa-tha  which  reveal    a  spirit  of 
good  fellowship  and  democracy. 

12.  Tell    anything  you  have   read    about   the  Indian   tribes 
mentioned  that  will  show  whether  they  made  any  attempt  to 
carry  out  Hi-a-wa-tha's  plan. 


CHAPTER   II 

EARLY  MONARCHY 

1.  THE  HOMERIC  ASSEMBLY 

2.  THE  KING'S  PALACE 

3.  GENEROUS  ALCINOUS 

At  sunrise  we  come  to  a  little  island,  lying  like  a  shin- 
ing jewel  in  the  mist  of  the  blue  sea  beneath  us.  It  is  one 
of  the  islands  of  Greece,  in  the  Mediterranean,  and  we 
are  seeing  it  as  the  poet  Homer  described  it  ten  centuries 
before  Christ,  or  almost  three  thousand  years  ago. 

Near  the  seashore  there  is  a  harbor  filled  with  ships, 
and  a  little  town  with  a  market  place.  In  the  market  the 
islanders  are  exchanging  raw  wool  and  weapons  of 
bronze  for  purple  dyes  and  bars  of  silver  which  seafaring 
men  have  brought  from  foreign  countries.  Sometimes  a 
Greek  puts  down  a  bar  of  solid  gold  as  payment  for  a 
heavy  weight  of  silver. 

Outside  the  little  town,  not  very  far  away,  there  is  a  big 
palace  surrounded  with  gardens  and  beautiful  orchards. 
Here  the  king  of  the  island  dwells.  Evidently  the  king  is 
a  rich  man  compared  with  the  rest  of  the  people.  Beyond 
the  kings  palace  lie  fields  of  black  earth,  cultivated  with 
ox-driven  ploughs,  and  beyond  the  fields  are  green  pastures 
where  great  herds  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  swine  are  browsing. 

This  life  that  Homer  described  is  sometimes  called  the 
Age  of  Bronze.  The  great  races  of  Europe  from  which 

'23 


24  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  people  of  America  are  descended — the  Germanic  tribes, 
the  Irish,  the  Romans,  the  Greeks — all  passed  at  one  time 
or  another  through  a  stage  of  early  civilization  which  we  may 
call  the  Age  of  Bronze,  and  a  stage  of  government  which  we 
may  call  early  monarchy,  or  kingship,  the  rule  of  one  man. 


THE  HOMERIC  ASSEMBLY 

A  boy  named  Dicon,  the  son  of  a  bronzesmith,  lived 
in  a  little  Greek  island  town  ruled  over  by  a  king  who 
was  always  called  by  his  subjects  "Generous  Alcinous." 

Dicon's  father,  Strato,  was  a  farmer  as  well  as  a 
bronzesmith.  He  had  orchards  and  grainfields  of  his 
own,  and  also  herds  of  cattle  and  goats  grazing  on 
those  rough  pastures  of  the  island  that  were  open 
land  and  free  to  all.  But  Strato  the  bronzesmith, 
whenever  he  could,  left  his  farm  work  and  labored  in 
his  smithy,  for  he  was  a  great  craftsman. 

One  morning,  Dicon  went  into  the  smithy  to  watch 
his  father  make  a  shield. 

Strato  was  a  big,  strong  man  with  tawny  hair  that 
clustered  around  his  head  in  tight  curls,  like  the  blos- 
soms of  the  hyacinth.  He  was  standing  in  the  fiery 
blast  of  the  furnace,  stripped  to  the  waist,  and  sweat- 
ing. First  he  blew  on  the  fire  with  his  blower  to  make 
it  blaze  up,  then  he  threw  some  bronze  into  the  melting 
pot.  When  the  bronze  was  red-hot  and  soft,  he  pulled 
it  out  with  a  pair  of  tongs,  placed  it  on  the  anvil, 
and  began  to  hammer  with  a  mighty  hammer,  till  the 
sparks  flew  round  him  in  a  whirling  circle. 


EARLY  MONARCHY 


25 


While  this  great  hammering  was  going  on,  Dicon 
heard  his  mother,  Heliodora,  calling  out  aloud  to  him. 
He  ran  into  the  house,  and  she  said:  "The  King's 
heralds  have  been  going  through  the  streets  calling 
all  the  people  to 
the  Assembly. 
A  Stranger  has 
come  to  the  is- 
land, and  King 
Alcinous  wishes 
to  give  him  a  ship, 
so  that  he  may 
sail  back  in  safety 
to  his  own  coun- 
try. When  the 
heralds  passed  by 
this  house,  they 
entered,  bringing 
a  message.  They 
said  the  generous 
King  desired  al- 
so to  make  the 
Stranger  a  present  of  a  bronze  tripod,  and  that  he  bade 
your  father  bring  one  to  the  palace." 

A  tripod  was  a  big  bronze  pot  with  three  legs,  used 
for  heating  water  over  a  fire,  and  Strato  had  many 
richly  carved  tripods  lying  in  his  smithy. 

"One  of  the  heralds,"  Heliodora  went  on,  "remained 
and  spoke  a  few  words  with  me,  telling  me  all  that  is 
known  about  the  Stranger  at  the  palace,  and  how  he  met 


THE  BRONZESMITH 


26  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  young  Princess  Nausicaa.  Yesterday  morning,  the 
young  Princess  rode  down  in  her  mule  wagon  to  wash 
clothes  at  the  place  where  the  river  meets  the  sea. 
When  she  and  her  maidens  had  finished  their  work 
of  treading  and  wringing  the  linen,  they  spread  it  out 
on  the  shore  where  the  waves  had  washed  the  pebbles 
cleanest,  and  left  it  to  bleach  in  the  hot  sun.  Then 
they  ate  some  cakes  and  began  to  play  ball  together. 
The  young  Princess  threw  a  ball  to  one  of  her  hand- 
maidens, but  it  went  wide,  and  missed  her,  and  fell 
into  a  deep  eddy  of  the  river.  Whereat  the  girls  broke 
out  into  a  shrill  cry.  A  moment  later  they  screamed 
yet  again,  still  more  startled,  because  they  saw  a  wild- 
looking  man,  clad  in  nothing  but  leaves  and  clotted 
seaweed,  creeping  out  toward  them  from  a  bushy 
thicket.  All  the  maidens  ran  away  except  the  noble 
young  Princess,  who  remained  bravely  to  meet  the 
Stranger  and  talk  with  him.  She  learned  that  he  had 
suffered  shipwreck  and  had  been  thrown  up  by  the 
waves  on  the  shore  of  the  island.  So  she  spoke  to  him 
kindly,  offered  him  food  and  clothing,  and  welcomed 
him  to  the  palace.  It  is  true  that  they  did  not  return 
together  to  the  town,  and  yet  it  is  in  everyone's  mouth 
that  the  proud  Princess  has  found  a  husband  at  last. 
No  one  knows  the  Stranger's  name,  but  all  think  from 
his  looks,  so  tall  and  gay,  that  he  must  be  some  great 
hero  or  chieftain." 

•  Now  Heliodora  filled  a  golden  pitcher  with  olive  oil. 
Then  she  slung  the  bath  cauldron  over  the  fire,  filled 
it  with  fair  water,  and  kindled  logs  to  make  the  water 


EARLY  MONARCHY  27 

hot.  While  the  flames  were  curling  about  the  bellied 
pot,  and  the  water  was  heating,  she  said:  "Quickly, 
Dicon,  beg  your  father  to  come  into  the  house  and 
make  himself  ready  for  the  Assembly.  He  should  wear 
clothing  that  is  fresh  and  stainless,  and  you,  too, 
should  put  on  a  clean  tunic/' 

So  Dicon  and  his  father  washed  themselves,  and  then 
rubbed  olive  oil  over  their  faces  and  their  bodies,  for 
the  Greeks  imagined  that  they  looked  more  beautiful 
when  their  skins  were  glistening  with  golden  oil. 
Dicon  put  on  a  white  tunic  made  of  soft,  shining  wool, 
threw  a  cloak  over  his  shoulder,  and  slipped  his  bare 
feet  into  a  pair  of  sandals.  Now  he  was  well-clothed 
and  ready  to  go  out  with  his  father  and  mother  to  the 
market  place. 

As  they  made  their  way  through  the  streets  of  the 
town  they  could  see  from  afar  the  blue-purple  water 
of  the  harbor  shining  under  the  deep  blue  sky,  and  they 
could  see  the  great  ships  that  were  anchored  there- 
ships  with  black  prows  and  white  sails.  When  they 
reached  the  market  place,  they  found  a  crowd  of 
people  assembled  around  the  King. 

King  Alcinous,  the  Stranger,  and  twelve  chieftains 
of  the  island,  the  King's  advisers  and  counselors,  were 
sitting  together  on  seats  of  polished  stone.  King 
Alcinous,  taking  his  scepter  in  his  hand,  rose  and 
thus  addressed  the  Council: 

"A  stranger  who  has  suffered  shipwreck  has  come  to 
my  palace,  asking  me  for  a  ship  and  a  safe  conduct 
home.  I  do  not  know  him;  I  do  not  know  whether  he 


28  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

comes  from  the  sunrising  or  the  sunsetting;  but  it  has 
always  been  our  custom  to  help  any  strangers  that 
are  driven  to  our  shore.  Let  us,  therefore,  give  him 
a  ship — one  of  our  best  ships.  Let  us  choose  a  crew 
from  among  our  people — fifty-two  of  our  best  seamen. 
When  this  is  done,  and  when  the  ship  is  ready,  come 
all  of  you  to  my  palace,  and  I  will  spread  a  feast  for 
you.  And  let  the  minstrel  come  also,  for  there  is 
nothing  better  than  song  to  gladden  the  hearts  of 


men." 


While  he  listened  to  this  speech,  Strato,  the  father 
of  Dicon,  asked  himself,  "Will  the  people  be  ready  to 
obey  the  King  in  all  his  wishes,  or  will  there  be  some 
confusion  over  the  choosing  of  the  fifty-two  seamen?" 
But  his  thought  was  answered  by  a  great  shout  from 
the  people,  praising  Alcinous  for  his  generosity.  One 
man,  however,  muttered,  "We  shall  have  to  pay  for 
this  feast.  A  few  days  hence  there  will  be  a  call  for 
tribute,  and  every  one  of  us  will  have  to  bring  his 
fowls  and  fruits  to  the  king."  However,  most  of  the 
people  were  ready  to  obey  without  a  murmur,  and  the 
chieftains  agreed  to  choose  a  ship  and  a  crew  of  fifty- 
two  seamen. 

Then  the  crowd  began  to  move  toward  the  palace. 
They  were  merry  at  the  prospect  of  a  feast,  and  all 
around  him  Dicon  heard  more  praise  of  the  King's 
generosity. 

Dicon  and  his  father  and  mother  went  back  to  the 
smithy  to  fetch  the  tripod.  They  left  Heliodora  in  the 
house,  for  it  was  not  the  custom  for  a  woman  to  go  to 


EARLY  MONARCHY  29 

a  feast  in  the  King's  palace.  Young  boys  might  at- 
tend, however,  so  Dicon  went  with  his  father.  On  his 
shoulder  Strato  bore  the  heavy  bronze  tripod,  richly 
ornamented  with  many  beautiful  images. 


THE  KING'S  PALACE 

Together  they  walked  through  a  stately  grove  of 
poplar  trees.  Presently  they  came  to  the  King's 
fair  orchard  of  pear  and  pomegranate  and  apple  trees 
laden  with  shining  fruit.  Beyond  that  was  a  beau- 
tiful garden,  with  scattering  fountains,  blown  by 
the  wind,  and  with  bright  flower-beds.  At  the  end  of 
the  garden  they  passed  through  a  big  gate  into  the 
courtyard  of  the  palace,  where  pigs  and  geese  and  chick- 
ens were  running  about.  Here  they  saw  King  Alcinous, 
himself,  unharnessing  the  horses  of  his  chariot.  In 
those  ancient  days  kings  were  not  ashamed  to  labor 
with  their  hands.  They  were  shepherds  and  tillers  of 
the  soil  as  well  as  rulers  of  the  people. 

But  if  the  courtyard  was  simple  and  rude,  the  inside 
of  the  palace  was  splendid.  Dicon's  eyes  opened  wide 
and  round  with  wonder  as  he  entered  the  great  hall 
where  the  feast  was  to  be  served.  It  was  all  gleaming 
with  gold  and  silver.  The  walls  were  of  bronze,  the 
doors  were  of  solid  gold,  beautifully  carved,  and  the 
ceiling,  too,  was  of  shining  metal  bordered  with  silver. 
At  that  hour  the  sun  was  setting,  and  the  slanting  rays 
of  red-gold  light  played  upon  the  sheen  of  the  metals 
with  a  glorious  blur  of  richness  and  splendor.  Along 


30  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  walls  there  were  rows  of  silver-studded  seats,  over 
which  had  been  thrown  soft  rugs,  woven  in  bright, 
pure  colors. 

At  the  far  end  of  the  hall,  the  Queen  was  standing 
near  her  throne.  She  was  clothed  in  flowing  garments 
that  left  bare  her  white  arms,  and  she  was  weaving 
threads  of  dim  sea-purple  into  a  great  purple  web. 
Near  her  stood  the  young  Princess,  taller  than  any  of 
her  handmaidens,  and  as  beautiful  as  a  goddess  in  face 
and  form,  with  bright,  shining  eyes  and  hair  the  color 
of  golden  amber. 

"A  fair  cattle-bringing  girl!"  said  Strato  to  his  son. 

A  young  girl  in  those  days  was  called  "cattle-bring- 
ing" when  she  was  old  enough  to  marry.  A  chief- 
tain who  married  a  princess  was  expected  to  give  a 
large  herd  of  cattle  to  her  father  as  a  payment  for 
his  bride. 

In  the  middle  of  the  hall  there  was  a  great  open 
hearth  where  the  meat  was  roasting,  and  at  first  Strato 
and  his  son  sat  down  near  the  ashes  of  the  hearth,  for 
this  was  the  humble  place  where  common  folk  were 
accustomed  to  sit;  but  when  the  feast  was  ready,  a 
slave  girl  beckoned  them  to  one  of  the  seats  by  the 
wall.  She  set  before  them  a  little  table  of  polished 
wood  and  this  served  as  a  plate  as  well  as  a  table. 
Dicon  put  out  his  hands,  and  ate  with  his  fingers  a 
large  piece  of  dripping  fat  pork  and  some  peas  and 
wheat  bread,  with  an  onion  for  relish.  Then  he  had 
fruit  and  nuts  and  cakes  and  other  dainties,  and  drank 
a  warm  drink  made  of  honey  and  wine  and  cheese. 


EARLY  MONARCHY 


31 


When  he  had  finished  the  good  meal  he  felt  happy, 
and  began  to  lick  his  fingers  carefully,  but  his  father 
said,  "Wait,  remember  you  are  in  the  King's  palace." 

In  a  few  minutes  the  slave  girl  brought  a  pitcher  and 
poured  fair  water 
into  a  beautiful 
gold  basin,  so  that 
he  might  wash  his 
fingers.  Then  the 
table  was  washed 
by  another  slave 
girl. 

When  all  had 
eaten  and  drunk 
their  fill,  Dicon 
heard  the  sound  of 
a  harp,  and  turned 
his  eyes  to  where 
the  minstrel  was 
seated.  The  min- 
strel had  a  place 
of  honor  near  the 
King  and  the  Stranger,  on  a  high  seat.  He  was  an 
old  man,  and  blind,  and  the  story  he  sang  was  from 
the  Iliad,  the  song  of  the  Trojan  War.  Every  now  and 
again  he  touched  the  soft  strings  of  his  harp,  and  the 
sound  of  his  voice  rose  and  fell  like  waves,  sometimes 
smooth,  sometimes  loud  and  thunderous  like  the  sea 
in  a  storm.  He  told  of  the  siege  of  Troy  and  of  the 
great  quarrel  between  King  Agamemnon  and  the  chief- 


THE  KING 


32  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

tain  Achilles.  In  the  story  of  this  quarrel  it  is  shown 
that  the  Greek  heroes  were  never  the  slaves  of  their 
king. 

THE    QUARREL 

Now  the  Greek  warriors  were  laying  siege  to  the  city  of  Troy. 
King  Agamemnon  was  the  overlord  of  the  Greeks,  Achilles  was 
the  bravest  warrior  of  all  the  Greek  chieftains,  and  Patroclus  was 
his  dear  friend. 

At  this  time  the  Greeks  had  not  yet  taken  the  city,  but  they 
had  captured  much  booty — gold  and  silver  and  cattle  and  women. 
All  the  girls  who  were  captured  in  war  were  made  slaves,  and 
were  given  to  the  heroes  as  part  of  the  spoils.  When  it  came 
to  dividing  the  spoils,  King  Agamemnon  and  Achilles  had  a 
bitter  quarrel. 

King  Agamemnon,  the  overlord,  was  obliged  to  give  up  the 
girl  who  had  fallen  to  his  lot,  because  she  had  been  a  priest- 
ess, serving  the  gods  in  a  temple  before  her  capture,  and  the 
chieftains  were  afraid  that  her  slavery  might  be  displeasing  to 
the  gods. 

So  Agamemnon  rose  up  in  council  with  the  chieftains,  and  said: 

"If  I  must  lose  my  slave  girl,  I  will  take  in  her  stead  Briseis 
of  the  Fair  Cheeks,  the  girl  who  has  fallen  to  the  lot  of  Achilles." 

This  angered  Achilles,  and  the  two  quarrelled  bitterly  over  the 
slave  girl.  In  the  end,  Achilles  stood  up  and  flung  biting  words  of 
abuse  at  the  king:  "You  drunkard  with  the  eyes  of  a  dog  and  the 
heart  of  a  deer,  if  you  do  me  this  wrong,  you  will  be  sorry  for  it 
some  day." 

But  Agamemnon  was  the  king,  and  what  he  wished  was  done. 
Briseis  of  the  Fair  Cheeks  was  led  away  from  the  tent  of  Achilles, 
and  she  went  sorrowfully,  often  looking  behind  her. 

Achilles  swore  that  he  would  no  longer  fight  for  Agamemnon, 
and  from  that  time  on  he  stayed  idle  in  his  tent,  sulking. 

The  battle  of  the  siege  continued  bitter  and  seemingly  unend- 
ing, but  the  fortune  of  war  now  turned  against  the  Greeks.  They 


EARLY  MONARCHY  33 

were  driven  back  over  the  plain  toward  the  seashore,  and  they  were 
so  hard-pressed  that  they  feared  the  men  of  Troy  might  come 
even  to  their  tents  and  finally  set  fire  to  their  ships. 

Patroclus,  the  friend  of  Achilles,  watched  the  deadly  struggle, 
and  his  heart  was  moved  with  pity  for  his  countrymen.  He  came 
to  Achilles  and  pleaded  with  him.  He  begged  him  to  forget  his 
quarrel  with  the  King  and  go  out  and  fight,  for  he  believed  that 
the  great  strength  and  courage  of  Achilles  would  turn  the  tide 
of  the  battle. 

But  Achilles  would  not  be  persuaded,  and  Patroclus  said  in 
despair,  "Achilles,  you  are  without  pity.  To  me  you  seem  so 
pitiless  that  I  think  the  grey  sea  must  have  been  your  mother, 
and  a  frowning,  rocky  cliff  your  father." 

Then  Patroclus  himself  put  on  the  armor  of  Achilles  and  went 
out  to  fight  for  the  Greeks.  On  that  very  first  day  he  was  slain, 
and  the  shadow  of  death  lay  over  his  body. 

When  the  news  was  brought  to  Achilles  a  black  cloud  of  grief 
fell  over  him,  for  he  loved  Patroclus  more  than  any  other  man. 
He  cried  aloud:  "Would  that  I  might  die,  for  I  sent  my  friend 
to  his  death.  Cursed  be  the  anger  that  causes  quarrelling  among 
men  and  made  me  quarrel  with  Agamemnon.  I  was  not  there 
to  help  my  friend,  I  who  am  the  strongest  of  all  the  Greeks. 
Now  let  me  forget  my  quarrel,  let  me  go  out  to  battle  and  avenge 
Patroclus!" 

So  Achilles  went  now  out  to  battle,  shining  like  the  sun;  and 
he  fought  like  a  god,  pressing  hard  on  the  men  that  he  slew  until 
the  black  earth  ran  with  blood.  He  raged  through  the  ranks 
of  the  enemy  like  a  forest  fire  on  some  parched  mountainside, 
whirling  his  spear  like  the  wind  driving  the  flames.  From  this 
time  on  the  tide  of  the  battle  was  turned,  and  the  victory  was 
to  the  Greeks. 

So  ended  the  minstrel,  and  all  were  silent,  lost  in 
wonder.  But  Dicon's  eyes  fell  upon  the  Stranger,  in 
whom  the  song  seemed  to  awaken  bitter  memories, 


ACHILLES  IN  BATTLE 


EARLY  MONARCHY  35 

for  he  caught  up  his  purple  cloak,  and  hid  his  face 
behind  it,  so  that  others  might  not  see  his  grief. 

Then  the  minstrel  sang  another  famous  song  of 
Troy,  this  time  the  story  of  subtle-souled  Odysseus 
and  the  plot  of  the  Wooden  Horse.  When  the  Stran- 
ger heard  the  praise  of  glorious  Odysseus,  his  heart 
melted  within  him  altogether;  the  tears  broke  from 
his  eyelids,  and  stole  down  his  cheeks. 

The  princes  were  calling  on  the  minstrel  to  sing  yet 
again,  but  King  Alcinous  said  suddenly,  "Let  the  min- 
strel cease,  for  there  is  one  here  to  whom  his  song  gives 
no  joy,  awakening,  perhaps,  sad  memories  instead." 
Then  the  King  turned  to  the  Stranger,  and  begged 
him  to  make  himself  known. 

'Tell  us  your  name,  your  land,  and  your  city.  Tell 
us  of  the  many  places  where  your  ship  has  carried  you 
in  your  wanderings.  And  tell  us,  like  a  brother,  why 
you  weep  and  mourn  in  spirit  when  you  listen  to  the 
great  songs  of  the  Trojan  War." 

Thereupon  the  Stranger  took  up  the  harp,  and 
sang  a  loud  and  beautiful  song.  First  he  made  known 
to  all  that  he  himself  was  Odysseus,  King  of  Ithaka, 
though  now  fallen  so  low  from  his  former  state.  Then 
he  told  of  his  sorrows  and  misfortunes,  and  his  wan- 
derings over  the  barren  sea. 

After  the  fall  of  Troy,  he  had  set  sail  homeward, 
but  he  had  been  swept  out  of  his  course  by  terrible 
winds  and  driven  to  one  far  country  after  another. 
He  had  seen  the  Land  of  the  Lotus  Eaters  and 
the  Land  of  the  Winds,  he  had  visited  the  Cave  of 


36  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  Giant  Cyclops  and  the  Isle  of  the  Witch  Circe. 
Escaping  from  Circe,  the  beautiful  witch,  he  had  passed 
by  the  dangerous  rocks  called  the  Rocks  Wandering, 
and  had  listened  to  the  Song  of  the  Sirens.  Then  he 
had  steered  his  course  between  the  great  reefs  called 
Scylla  and  Charybdis,  and  had  reached  the  Far  Isle 
of  the  Nymph  Calypso.  Calypso  had  sheltered  him 
and  loved  him;  and  she  had  held  him,  unwilling,  in  her 
sway  for  seven  long  years.  In  the  eighth  year  she 
had  given  him  his  freedom. 

For  seventeen  days  and  nights  he  had  travelled  over 
the  sea-foam  on  a  raft,  and  then,  on  the  eighteenth 
day,  a  great  storm  had  arisen,  and  a  monstrous  sobbing 
wave  had  dashed  him  from  the  raft,  and  shattered  it, 
and  aided  by  wind  and  tide,  had  swept  him  up  to  the 
shore  of  Alcinous's  island.  All  these  adventures  he 
told  at  length  with  many  beautiful  and  winged  words. 

GENEROUS  ALCINOUS 

So  ended  the  singer,  and  all  were  silent  in  the 
shadowy  hall,  stock-still  like  men  enchanted.  Then 
Alcinous  rose  up  and  spoke: 

"  Since  you  have  come  to  my  roof,  King  Odysseus, 
no  more  shall  you  have  to  wander  and  go  astray. 
To-morrow  we  will  give  you  a  ship  and  a  safe-conduct 
home,  and  we  will  land  you  in  Ithaka,  your  own 
country." 

Then  the  King  turned  to  the  chieftains  of  the  island 
and  said,  "Now  that  we  have  shared  the  feast  to- 


EARLY  MONARCHY  37 

gether,  and  listened  to  the  harp,  let  us  speak  of  the 
gifts  that  we  would  give  to  Odysseus  before  he 
leaves  us." 

The  Queen's  maidens  brought  out  a  polished  chest 
full  of  rich  garments  that  the  Queen  herself  had  woven, 
and  Odysseus  thanked  her.  King  Alcinous  called  out 
to  Strato  to  bring  forth  the  tripod,  and  Odysseus 
thanked  the  King  and  honored  Strato  with  words  of 
praise. 

"Marvellous,"  he  said  to  Strato,  "are  the  images 
that  you  have  hammered  into  the  bronze.  Truly 
the  deathless  gods  themselves  must  have  taught  you 
your  craft." 

Then  Alcinous  waved  his  hand  with  a  generous  ges- 
ture and  said  to  Strato,  "Go  out  into  the  courtyard 
and  choose  from  among  my  herds  two  oxen  and  three 
cows  as  a  reward  for  your  labor." 

So  Strato  went  out  into  the  courtyard  while  Dicon 
stayed  in  the  hall,  watching  the  young  princes  as  they 
stood  up  to  dance,  beating  time,  to  the  music,  on  the 
ground  with  their  feet.  One  of  the  young  boys  took  a 
red  ball  and  flung  it  almost  to  the  roof,  and  another, 
springing  up  easily,  grasped  it  before  he  touched  the 
ground  again;  then  they  danced  awhile,  changing  places 
with  each  other,  and  those  who  stood  around  in  a  circle 
applauded  and  filled  the  air  with  noise.  As  Dicon  was 
waiting  there,  the  King  passed  by,  and  Dicon  heard  him 
say  to  the  chieftains  who  were  with  him,  "Let  each 
man  here  give  also  a  great  cauldron  and  a  stand,  then 
by  collecting  tribute  from  the  people  at  the  Assembly, 


38 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


we  will  repay  ourselves,  since  otherwise  the  burden 
that  each  would  have  to  bear  would  be  too  great." 

Dicon  wondered  whether  the  people  would  obey  the 
King,  and  willingly  pay  him  tribute.  But  those  who 

were  present  made 
no  complaint.  On 
this  island  the 
folk  were  obedient 
to  their  ruler  be- 
cause he  was  gen- 
erous  and  just, 
and  because,  with- 
out  him,  they 
would  not  have 
known  how  to 
keep  order  among 
themselves. 

Now  Dicon  saw 
Nausicaa,  the 
young  Princess, 
go  up  to  Odys- 
seus. 

"Farewell,"  said  she  sadly,  "and  when  you  go  home- 
ward may  you  remember  me,  and  be  mindful  that  you 
first  owed  your  welcome  to  me." 

And  subtle-souled  Odysseus  made  answer,  "Nausicaa, 

if  Zeus  allows  me  to  reach  Ithaka,  then  will  I  always 

pray  to  you  as  to  the  maiden  who  gave  me  back  my  life." 

When  the  dance  was  ended,   the  guests  began  to 

leave,  and  Dicon  went  out  into  the  courtyard,  where  he 


ODYSSEUS  AND    NAUSICAA 


EARLY  MONARCHY  39 

found  his  father  with  two  oxen  and  three  cows.  They 
walked  home  together  in  the  moonlight,  driving  their 
cattle  before  them. 

Odysseus,  too,  passed  through  the  gate  of  the  King's 
courtyard,  and  went  down  to  the  ship  on  the  seashore. 
Straightway  the  seamen  hoisted  their  sails  and  took 
their  oars,  and  the  ship  sped  over  the  sea  like  a  strong 
sea  bird.  Odysseus  fell  into  a  deep  sleep,  and  at  dawn 
he  was  brought  to  his  own  home,  the  rugged  island  of 
Ithaka.  Here  he  found  his  kingdom  all  in  riotous  dis- 
order and  confusion,  for  his  subjects,  like  those  of 
Alcinous,  needed  a  strong  ruler  to  keep  peace  among 
them.  Without  a  king,  they  were  like  silly  sheep  that 
had  lost  their  shepherd.  But  the  story  of  the  home- 
coming of  King  Odysseus  is  yet  another  story,  which 
here  we  must  leave  untold. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  In  the  Age  of  Bronze,  men  have  not 
yet  learned  how  to  rule  themselves,  but  they  are  learning  the 
social  necessity  of  law  and  order,  and  obedience  to  authority. 
One  man,  the  king,  is  the  source  of  authority,  and  his  palace  is 
the  center  of  social  life.  What  difficulties  probably  arose  if  a 
king  was  unjust  and  selfish? 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Describe  the  first  arts  of  civilization  which  men  learned 
in  the  Age  of  Bronze. 

2.  What  part  was  taken  by  the  King  at  the  Assembly?    By 
the  chieftains?    By  the  people? 

3.  Where  did  the  bronzesmith   and  his  son  sit  when  they 
first  entered  the  palace? 


40  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

4.  Explain  how  the  holding  of  personal  property  (in  place 
of  having  property  common  to  all)  would  change  the  relations 
of  a  tribal  chieftain  to  his  people. 

5.  How  did  King  Alcinous  pay  for  the  tripod  ? 

6.  What  is  the  exact  meaning  of  the  word  ''monarchy"  ? 

7.  Describe  the  feast  at  the  palace,  and  the  good  and  pleas- 
ing effects  of  kingly  rule  at  this  stage. 

8.  Was  King  Alcinous's  kingdom  big  or  small,  as  compared 
with  the  chief  nations  of  to-day? 

9.  What  might  be  the  disadvantages  of  monarchy  to  the  poor 
at  this  stage  of  the  world's  growth  ? 

10.  Many  of  our  most  beautiful  fairy  stories  are  very,  very  old. 
Though  they  have  been  changed  in  some  details  to  suit  modern 
readers,  they  date  back  thousands  of  years  to  the  early  monarchies 
of  the  world.  Can  you  remember  any  fairy  stories  about  kings  and 
queens,  or  princesses  and  country  boys,  which  remind  you  of  the 
conditions  described  in  this  story? 

11.  Was  the  method  of  eating  at  the  time  of  this  story  a  hygi- 
enic one  ?   Give  reasons  for  your  opinion. 


CHAPTER   III 

THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS 

1.  THE  FEAST 

2.  A  SCHOOLBOY  IN  ATHENS 

3.  THE  TRIAL 

4.  THE  FUNERAL  SPEECH  OF  PERICLES 

The  Age  of  Bronze,  so  bright  and  beautiful  as  pictured 
for  us  in  Homer's  poems,  fades  out  of  our  thoughts,  and 
five  hundred  years  pass,  during  which  time  the  Greek  peoples 
develop  their  civilization  until  they  have  become  a  model  to 
the  rest  of  the  world,  in  art,  in  wisdom,  and  in  government. 

We  look  down  over  the  Greek  city-state  of  Athens  as  it 
was  in  the  fifth  century  before  Christ. 

The  town  is  built  around  a  rocky  hill  rising  out  of -a 
plain  that  slopes  back  toward  a  chain  of  mountains.  The 
mountains  are  well-watered  and  covered  with  woods,  and 
the  plain  around  the  city  is  fertile,  with  small  vineyards, 
olive  groves,  and  wheat  fields  belonging  to  the  citizens. 

Within  the  city  walls,  crowning  the  high  places,  there 
are  great  buildings  made  of  dazzling  white  marble,  that 
turns  to  rose  and  orange  at  sunset.  The  little  dwelling 
houses  below  them  are  plainly  built,  but  these  great 
buildings  are  grand  and  beautiful.-  They  are  not  palaces 
—for  the  people  of  Athens  bow  down  to  no  king — they 
are  public  buildings,  or  state  buildings,  used  freely  by  all 
the  people  and  belonging  to  the  citizens  as  a  whole. 

41 


42  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

The  people  of  Athens  now  rule  themselves ',  meeting  in 
great  assemblies  held  for  that  purpose.  Their  government 
is  called  a  democracy,  because  it  is  in  the  hands  of  the 
many,  not  of  the  few.  All  the  citizens  can  attend  the  great 
Assembly,  and  any  question  of  government  is  decided  by 
the  opinion  of  the  greatest  number  of  the  citizens.  Women 
and  slaves,  however,  are  not  considered  citizens,  and  do 
not  attend  the  Assembly. 

Athens  has  reached  the  time  of  its  greatest  power  and  pros- 
perity under  the  leadership  of  a  democratic  statesman  called 
Pericles.  The  Athenians  are  devoted  to  their  city  and  very 
proud  of  their  government.  An  Athenian  citizen  generally 
spends  about  one  day  in  four  working  for  his  government. 

The  state  of  Athens  consists  only  of  one  city  and  the 
surrounding  countryside.  It  is  so  small  that  every  citizen 
is  able  to  attend  the  Assembly  and  himself  directly  vote 
for  or  against  a  new  law.  And  so  the  Athenian  democracy 
is  called  a  "direct"  democracy.  To-day  we  citizens  of 
America,  because  our  country  is  so  large,  could  not  pos- 
sibly all  meet  together  in  one  big  assembly  and  hear  each 
other  speak.  So  we  vote  for  special  lawmakers,  or  rep- 
resentatives, to  act  for  us,  or  represent  us,  and  it  is  only 
the  representatives  who  go  to  Congress.  Therefore  our 
democracy  is  called  a  ''representative"  democracy. 


THE  FEAST 

One  evening  in  the  year  430  B.  C.,  a  vase  painter 
named  Cleandros  was  walking  through  the  streets  of 
Athens  with  his  wife  Theodora  and  his  boy  Cleon,  on 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  43 

the  way  to  the  house  of  a  kinsman.  A  son  had  been 
born  to  this  kinsman,  and  a  family  feast  was  to  be 
held  to  welcome  the  newborn  child  into  the  tribe. 

The  white  city,  with  its  pillared  temples  and  flat- 
roofed  dwellings,  lay  shadowed  under  the  dim  light  of 
the  moon,  and  the  trembling  rays  of  the  stars.  Cleon's 
mother,  Theodora,  was  frightened  at  the  darkness  of 
the  streets,  for  she  seldom  left  her  own  home.  So 
Cleon  was  carrying  a  lantern,  and  at  one  corner,  near 
a  public  fountain,  he  flashed  its  golden  light  upon  a 
policeman,  a  huge  Scythian  slave  carrying  a  long  bow 
and  a  sheaf  of  arrows. 

To  avoid  the  pools  of  water  in  the  streets — for  there 
had  been  a  shower  of  spring  rain — Theodora  was  skirt- 
ing close  to  the  walls  of  the  houses,  when  she  heard  the 
sudden  warning :- 

"Out  of  the  way!" 

Cleon  skipped  like  a  young  goat  and  turned  his 
light  toward  the  voice.  Theodora  moved  away  only 
just  in  time.  A  slave  boy  poking  his  head  out  of  an 
upper-story  window,  poured  a  bucket  of  dirty  water 
into  the  gutter,  laughing  at  the  big  splash  that  he 
was  making. 

"Zeus!  What  a  merciful  escape!"  panted  Theodora. 

Although  glorious  Athens  was  at  this  time  the  most 
beautiful  and  the  most  civilized  city  in  the  world,  yet 
it  had  no  drains,  so  that  dirty  water  and  garbage  had 
to  be  thrown  out  upon  the  streets. 

Soon  they  reached  the  kinsman's  house,  a  low  stone 
building  with  no  windows  on  the  first  floor.  Here  they 


44  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

saw   hanging   over   the   doorway   a   wreath   of  olive 
branches,  the  soft  grey  crown  that  was  the  joyous  sign 
of  the  birth  of  a  son.    If  a  girl-child,  less  welcome,  had 
been  born,  a  homelier  sign  would  have  been  set  out- 
two  tufts  of  wool  for  spinning. 

They  passed  through  the  doorway  into  the  men's 
courtyard,  and  beyond  that  they  came  into  the  dining 
hall,  where  they  found  the  kinsfolk  gathered  together, 
talking  and  laughing.  The  pillars  were  hung  with  gay 
garlands  of  flowers,  white  narcissus  and  crimson  hy- 
acinths, and  the  hall  was  illumined  with  flashing 
torches,  the  light  of  which  was  reflected  in  the  smiling 
eyes  of  the  guests  and  in  the  goblets,  gkaming  with 
wine,  upon  the  richly  spread  table. 

Theodora,  meek  and  silent,  was  led  away  into  an 
inner  room,  the  women's  apartment,  for  the  women  of 
the  family  took  no  part  in  the  feast. 

The  men  were  clothed  in  flowing  garments  of  fine 
white  wool,  bordered  with  scarlet  and  purple.  They 
lay  on  couches  around  the  table  while  the  food  was 
served  to  them  in  shapely  vessels  by  slaves.  But  the 
little  boy  Cleon  sat  patiently  upright  on  a  bench.  He 
did  not  share  the  food,  nor  did  he  take  any  part  in  the 
conversation. 

For  the  first  course  there  were  golden  roasted  pigeons, 
a  great  delicacy;  after  this  came  radishes  in  oil,  then 
figs  and  almonds  and  cakes,  with  honeycombs,  fruit 
of  the  toil  of  murmuring  bees.  The  guests  ate  with 
their  fingers,  which  they  wiped  on  lumps  of  soft  white 
dough,  provided  for  this  purpose. 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  45 

Cleon,  as  a  well-bred  Athenian  boy,  listened  in 
silence  to  the  talk  of  his  elders.  There  had  been  a 
meeting  of  the  Assembly  that  morning,  and  Cleon 
heard  his  father  praising  Pericles,  the  great  statesman. 

"To  my  mind,"  said  Cleandros,  "Pericles  has  a 
gravity  and  a  purity  of  spirit  that  lift  him  far  above  the 
common  herd.  And  yet  he  remains  a  democrat  and 
believes  that  the  greatness  of  Athens  is  due  to  our 
democracy." 

But,  as  it  often  happens,  the  guests  were  not  all  of 
one  mind  on  political  questions.  A  kinsman  named 
Lysias  exclaimed  sharply: 

"I  cannot  say  that  I  share  his  faith  in  the  people. 
We  have  to  put  up  with  a  good  deal  nowadays,  on 
account  of  our  democracy.  I  came  late  to  the  Assembly 
this  morning,  and  had  to  sit  next  to  a  sausage  seller. 
Oh,  how  the  fellow  smelled  of  onions!  At  the  end  I 
voted  no,  and  the  sausage  seller  voted  aye.  The  ayes 
were  in  the  majority  and  carried  the  Assembly.  What 
are  we  coming  to,  in  these  modern  times,  that  the  city 
of  Athens  should  be  governed  by  sausage  sellers!  I 
cannot  understand  what  the  people  want  meddling  in 
public  affairs.  They  are  very  extravagant  with  other 
men's  money,  and  so  is  Pericles." 

There  was  a  short  silence,  because  most  of  the 
kinsmen  believed  in  democratic  government.  Then 
Cleandros  returned: 

"One  day  Pericles  was  blamed  in  the  Assembly  for 
being  too  extravagant  with  the  city's  money,  but  he 
answered  gravely,  putting  us  all  to  shame:  'If  too 


46  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

much  has  been  spent  on  public  buildings,  then  let  it 
be  charged  to  my  private  account,  not  yours,  only 
let  the  new  buildings  be  inscribed  with  my  poor 
name,  not  that  of  the  people  of  Athens.'  At  this,  we 
voted,  after  all,  that  the  taxes  should  be  spent  as  he 
wished." 

"But  Cleandros,"  cried  Lysias  indignantly,  "if  this 
goes  on,  we  shall  be  ruined  with  high  taxes!  There's  no 
living  in  Athens  these  days.  Foreigners  who  come  to 
Athens  say  that  the  city  is  ornamented  with  public 
buildings  like  a  vain  woman  tricked  out  with  jewels." 

The  little  boy  Cleon  now  looked  intently  at  Lysias. 
Cleon  admired  his  father  greatly,  and  was  ready  to 
mistrust  any  man  who  disagreed  openly  with  Cleandros. 
He  noted,  with  disfavor,  that  Lysias's  hair  was  very 
glossy  and  black. 

Lysias  was  saying,  "We  ought  to  meet  and  discuss 
all  these  matters  privately,  and  get  rid  of  the  crowd  and 
the  rabble,"  when  the  conversation  was  interrupted  by 
the  entrance  of  dancers  and  flute  players. 

The  dancers  were  young  girls  clad  in  flowing,  fine- 
spun robes,  the  color  of  saffron.  For  a  while  Cleon 
watched  them  weaving  out  the  pattern  of  the  dance 
with  gleaming  white  feet,  as  light  as  air.  Then  the 
slaves  cleared  away  the  dishes  and  brought  in  more 
garlands  of  flowers  and  cups  of  wine  for  the  guests. 
Cleon  was  sent  into  the  women's  apartment  to  eat 
there  a  simple  supper  of  milk  and  honey  cakes. 

He  found  the  tiny  baby  lying  curled,  like  a  flower  yet 
to  be,  in  the  lap  of  its  nurse,  an  old  slave  woman.  The 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS 


47 


child  had  already  been  water-sprinkled  and  named  after 
its  grandfather. 

Cleon's  mother,  Theodora,  was  sitting  chatting  with 
her  kinswomen,  among  whom  was  a  little  girl  named 
Chrysilla.  Chrysilla  was  an  orphan  and  the  heiress  to 
a  large  fortune,  her  father  having  been  killed  a  year 
before  in  the  first  battle  of  the  war  between  Athens  and 


ATHENIAN  WOMEN  AT  HOME 


Sparta  and  their  allies.  To-day  she  was  dressed  for 
the  feast  and  surrounded  with  fine  toys,  but  she  looked 
pale  and  weak  and  tearful. 

For  a  few  minutes  Cleon  listened  to  the  light  chatter 
of  the  kinswomen,  which  ran  on  like  the  purring  of 
looms.  Some  of  them  had  saucy  tongues  and  were  full 
of  gibes  at  their  husbands.  This  is  not  to  be  wondered 
at,  as  they  had  been  given  in  marriage  by  their  fathers, 
regardless  of  their  own  wishes.  They  asked  Cleon 
what  he  had  heard  at  the  feast. 

"Most  of  the  talking  was  done  by  Lysias,"  he  said, 
"but  I  could  see  that  my  father  and  some  of  the  others 
grew  rather  weary  of  listening  to  his  airing  of  his  views 
on  political  questions." 


48  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

"I  can  understand  that  very  well,"  said  one  of  the 
women.  "Lysias  and  my  husband  both  belong  to  the 
party  of  the  oligarchs.  They  believe  that  government 
should  be  carried  on  by  a  small  group,  and  of  course 
they  think  of  themselves  as  belonging  to  that  small 
group,  and  better  than  everybody  else.  Sometimes 
when  I  am  busy  at  my  housekeeping,  I  hear  my 
husband  solemnly  giving  out  some  opinion  on  politics. 
I  say  to  him  gayly,  'Well,  how  are  the  great  affairs  of 
state  going  to-day?  If  you  amend  the  laws  of  Athens 
as  well  as  you  mended  my  little  warming  pan  yesterday, 
then  I  can  only  say  that  I  am  sorry  for  our  poor  city!' 
He  answers  gruffly,  'How  can  a  stay-at-home  woman 
understand  anything  about  city  affairs?'  So  I  have  to 
keep  still." 

" That's  one  thing  I  never  will  do,"  said  another. 
"We  are  as  helpless  as  babies,  and  our  lungs  are  our 
only  defense.  I  sometimes  ask  my  husband  why  he 
has  voted  in  favor  of  some  stupid  law,  and  all  that  he 
answers  is,  'Stick  to  your  spinning,  my  dear;  govern- 
ment is  the  business  of  men.'  But  I  don't  keep  still; 
I  never  stop  complaining  at  my  bad  luck  in  being 
born  a  woman."1 

A  third  began  to  repeat  a  speech  that  she  had  heard 
at  the  theater:  "Of  all  things  that  have  life  and  sense, 
we  Athenian  women  are  the  most  unfortunate  crea- 
tures. First  we  have  to  buy  a  bridegroom  at  a  great 
price,  and  set  over  ourselves  a  new  master  stricter  than 

1  Conversation  of  this  sort  is  found  in  plays  by  the  Greek  writers, 
Aristophanes  and  Euripides. 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  49 

a  father.  Then,  coming  to  an  entirely  new  household, 
we  have  to  guess  at  the  best  way  of  humoring  an 
unknown  husband.  It  needs  extraordinary  cleverness. 
If  by  chance  we  succeed  in  it,  our  life  is  happy;  if  not, 
it  were  best  to  die." 

Cleon's  mother,  Theodora,  sat  silent  during  this 
interesting  conversation.  She  had  been  married  when 
she  was  a  mere  child  of  fourteen.  She  could  remember 
taking  her  dolls  and  her  other  toys  and  offering  them 
up  on  the  altar  of  the  maiden  goddess  Artemis  only 
the  day  before  her  wedding.  From  the  first,  her 
husband  Cleandros  had  treated  her  very  kindly,  and 
she  soon  became  "accustomed  to  his  hand,"  as  he  put 
it.  She  loved  him  and  was  entirely  obedient  to 
him,  a  gentle,  patient  woman,  wrapped  up  in  her 
household  cares. 

But  even  Theodora  felt  indignation  when  the  kins- 
women began  to  describe  the  unhappy  situation  of 
poor  Chrysilla,  the  little  orphan.  Indeed,  an  Athenian 
heiress  was  more  to  be  pitied  than  a  beggar  maid. 

According  to  the  law,  Chrysilla's  fortune  was  in  the 
hands  of  her  guardian,  Lysias  the  oligarch.  Half  of  it 
was  legally  his.  Lysias  was  her  uncle,  and  she  was 
expected  to  marry  him  as  soon  as  she  became  of  age, 
in  order  that  none  of  the  fortune  should  be  lost  to  the 
family.  The  heiress  shall  marry  the  eldest  living  brother 
of  her  father,  so  ran  the  law.  But  the  kinswomen 
suspected  that  Lysias  had  no  intention  of  marrying 
his  little  niece,  as  he  had  already  chosen  a  bride  with  a 
large  marriage  portion.  At  the  same  time,  he  was 


SO  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

rapidly  spending  Chrysilla's  money,  and  there  seemed 
to  be  no  hope  of  removing  it  from  his  control. 

One  of  the  kinswomen  remarked  with  great  em- 
phasis, "You  never  can  trust  a  man  with  such  glossy 
black  hair  as  his.  As  soon  as  I  first  set  eyes  on  Lysias's 
hair,  I  felt  there  was  something  about  him  that  I  did 
not  like." 

While  the  women  were  talking  over  this  matter,  Cleon 
played  games  with  Chrysilla  and  the  other  children  of 
the  household.  They  had  toys  of  all  kinds — dolls,  balls, 
hoops,  wooden  horses,  and  little  chariots,  including 
one  that  could  be  harnessed  to  a  dog.  They  drove  each 
other  up  and  down  in  this  chariot,  as  fast  as  possible, 
cracking  their  whips,  and  so  the  evening  passed. 

On  the  way  home,  Theodora  spoke  to  her  husband 
about  Lysias  and  the  suspicions  of  the  kinswomen. 

'This  is  what  they  said,  'men  with  shining  black  hair 
are  never  to  be  trusted." 

"My  dear  wife,  what  old  wives'  tales  do  you  kins- 
women repeat  to  each  other?" 

"But,"  hesitated  Theodora  with  gentle  persistence, 
"they  may  be  speaking  the  truth.  I  do  not  like  the 
look  of  him  myself." 

"Nor  do  I,"  put  in  Cleon,  "and  I  saw  how  his  hair 
was  polished,  too." 

Cleandros  said  very  firmly  that  Lysias's  hair  was  of 
no  importance  in  the  matter,  but  he  agreed  that 
Lysias  was  not  to  be  trusted  as  a  guardian. 

"Whenever  I  see  her  wan  little  face,"  he  said,  "I 
feel  sorry  for  poor  Chrysilla.  The  child  weeps  like 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  51 

Niobe,  she  is  a  fountain  of  tears.  If  he  treats  her  ill, 
perhaps  we  can  bring  a  lawsuit  against  him,  and  ask  for 
the  protection  of  the  state.  At  the  next  Assembly  we 
are  to  discuss  the  matter  of  the  war  orphans,  and  decide 
how  much  money  is  to  be  put  aside  for  them.  This 
will  be  an  excellent  time  to  arouse  the  sympathy  of  a 
big  jury  for  poor  little  Chrysilla.  The  children  of 
needy  soldiers  who  have  died  in  battle  will  be  supported 
by  the  state,  and  the  fortunes  of  the  richer  children 
should  be  protected  against  selfish  guardians.  It  would 
amuse  me  to  see  Lysias  standing  up  in  a  law  court, 
explaining  to  a  big  jury  that  his  actions  ought  not  to  be 
judged  by  the  ordinary  laws  of  a  democracy." 

A  SCHOOLBOY  IN  ATHENS 

A  few  days  later,  a  meeting  of  the  Assembly  was 
held  to  discuss  the  matter  of  the  war  orphans. 
Cleandros,  the  vase  painter,  attended  with  the  rest  of 
the  citizens. 

The  Assembly  met  very  early  in  the  morning,  at 
sunrise,  and  was  held  out  in  the  open  air,  on  Pnyx  Hill, 
at  a  huge  meeting  place  provided  with  stone  seats 
for  six  or  eight  thousand  men. 

At  dawn,  the  streets  were  filled  with  the  rumbling 
wooden  carts  of  countrymen  who  had  left  their  farms 
for  the  day.  Great  crowds  flocked  up  the  hill.  Towns- 
folk, shepherds  from  the  mountains,  cowherds  from 
the  plains,  and  traders  and  wealthy  men  were  all 
jostled  together  in  the  great  stream.  Workmen  like 


52  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Cleandros  abandoned  their  tools  and  their  work- 
benches, and  the  small  shopkeepers  left  their  stalls 
in  the  charge  of  slaves,  or  of  foreigners  who,  like  the 
slaves,  had  no  rights  as  citizens  and  therefore  might 
not  attend  the  Assembly. 

Cleon,  too,  rose  up  early,  for  he  was  a  schoolboy, 
and  the  schools  of  Athens,  like  the  Assembly,  opened  at 

sunrise.  He  started  off 
to  school  followed  by 
the  slave  Xanthias, 
who  was  his  pedagogue. 
Pedagogue  is  a  Greek 
word  meaning  boy- 
WRITING  MATESRIALSLUSED  BY  A  GREEK  leader,  and  almost 

every  Athenian  boy, 

even  the  son  of  a  poor  man,  had  a  pedagogue  who  was 
both  tutor  and  servant.  Xanthias  carried  Cleon's  wax 
tablet  and  his  stylus,  which  was  an  ivory  pen  pointed 
at  one  end  and  flattened  at  the  other.  Cleon  wrote  with 
the  pointed  end  on  his  wax  tablet,  and  afterwards, 
with  the  flat  end,  rubbed  out  the  letters  and  smoothed 
over  the  wax. 

At  the  door  of  the  schoolhouse,  the  schoolmaster 
met  Xanthias  and  asked  him  if  Cleon  had  been  a 
good  boy. 

"Well,"  answered  Xanthias  doubtfully,  "he  has  been 
good  and  I  may  also  say  he  has  not  been  good.  Cleon 
is  quick  at  arithmetic,  but  he  is  a  poor  speller,  and 
poor  in  recitation.  When  he  is  out  playing  with  his 
little  friends  in  the  market  place,  he  talks  fast  enough, 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  S3 

nineteen  to  the  dozen;  but  when  his  mother  asks  him  to 
recite  some  childish  poem  at  home,  the  words  come  out 
like  water  dripping  through  a  crack:  'Apollo1 — long 
pause — then  'hunter/  and  so  on.  His  father  has  bought 
him  a  new  stylus  and  I  constantly  put  fresh  wax  on  his 
tablet;  but  he  does  not  keep  his  hands  clean!  If  he 
makes  a  spelling  mistake,  and  has  to  rewrite  a  simple 
word  like  Achilles,  he  smears  all  over  the  wax  with  his 
grubby  little  fingers  and  makes  such  a  mess." 1 

"Sometimes,"  suggested  the  master,  "a  good  flogging 
will  improve  a  boy's  spelling  wonderfully." 

"Oh,  no,"  said  Xanthias  hastily,  feeling  that  he  had 
gone  too  far.  "Cleon  is  a  good  boy,  and  we  must 


SCHOOL  SCENE  IN  ANCIENT  ATHENS 

always  remember  that  he  is  beyond  his  age  in  arith- 
metic. Well  now,  sir,  I  must  be  returning  home,  but 
I  have  here  the  school  fee  to  hand  over  to  you.  The 

1  A  description  like  this  of  an  Athenian  schoolboy  is  to  be  found  in 
the  writings  of  the  Greek,  Herondas, 


54  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

last  day  of  the  month  has  come  round,  there  is  no 
escaping  that." 

The  master  taught  the  boys  grammar,  arithmetic, 
and  geometry,  and  he  also  gave  them  lessons  in  music 
and  elocution.  That  morning  Cleon  learned  by  heart 
some  of  the  poetry  of  Homer. 

At  noon  he  went  home  for  the  midday  meal.  His 
father  told  what  had  happened  at  the  Assembly,  and 
was  pleased  at  the  outcome.  The  Council  of  Five 
Hundred  had  brought  forward  a  resolution  to  support 
the  war  orphans  at  the  expense  of  the  state,  and  the 
Assembly  had  voted  favorably  on  this  measure.  The 
Assembly  had  also  voted  to  give  to  the  heroes  who  had 
fallen  in  battle  a  public  funeral  at  a  state  burial  ground 
outside  the  city. 

It  was  considered  a  high  honor  for  a  citizen  to  be 
buried  there.  The  statesman  Pericles  had  been  chosen 
to  make  the  funeral  speech,  and  Cleandros  thought 
there  would  be  great  crowds  of  people  to  hear  him. 
Cleandros  had  met  several  of  his  kinsfolk  at  the 
Assembly,  and  they  had  decided  that  all  the  fam- 
ily, both  men  and  women,  should  meet  together 
and  attend  the  funeral  with  Chrysilla,  in  memory 
of  her  father. 

After  the  midday  meal,  Cleandros  went  out  to  his 
workshop.  Two  slaves  whom  he  had  trained  as  potters 
were  busy  at  their  wheels  and  he  himself  began  to 
paint  a  large  bowl.  The  Greeks  were  lovers  of  the 
beautiful,  and  even  the  pots  and  pans  and  bowls  which 
they  used  every  day  for  their  cooking  and  their  meals 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS 


55 


were  hand-painted  with  beautiful  designs  and  figures, 
each  one  a  work  of  art  in  itself. 

Cleon,  however,  interrupted  his  father's  painting, 
and  begged  him  to  leave  his  work,  and  come  out 
to  the  Academy. 

"Well/'  said  Cleandros,  "it  is  a  fine  day;  perhaps 
we  could  hardly  do  better  than  go  to  the  Academy," 


VASE  PAINTERS  OF  ANCIENT  ATHENS 


and  he  laid  down  his  tools,  repeating  an  old  Greek 
proverb:  "Why  pile  up  riches?  A  man  wastes  time 
making  money,  he  cannot  pile  up  extra  days  of  pre- 
cious life  as  he  piles  up  coins." 

So  they  went  out  together,  followed  by  Xanthias 
the  pedagogue,  and  they  came  first  to  the  market 
place,  a  great  open  square  surrounded  with  beautiful 
marble  public  buildings.  The  streets  were  crowded 
with  men  and  boys,  but  there  were  hardly  any  women 
to  be  seen.  Cleandros,  as  usual,  did  the  marketing  for 


56  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

his  family,  choosing  the  food;  and  Xanthias  produced 
the  necessary  coins  out  of  his  mouth,  having  no  other 
purse.  Xanthias,  too,  bargained  with  the  shopkeepers, 
many  of  whom  spoke  a  curious  broken  Greek  and  made 
signs  with  their  hands. 

Cleandros  bought  flour  for  cakes,  freshly  curded 
cheese,  curly  lettuce,  and  thick-clustered  purple  grapes. 
Such  simple  fare  was  not  satisfying  to  Xanthias.  He 
was  a  Persian,  fat  and  short-winded,  and  accustomed  to 
rich  food,  and  long  heavy  meals.  To-day  he  looked  at  the 
lettuce,  and  said  to  himself  sadly,  as  he  carried  it  home, 
"A  Persian  never  rises  satisfied  from  a  Greek  meal!" 

Cleon  and  his  father  went  on  together  toward  the 
walls  of  the  city,  then  passed  through  a  big  gate  and 
walked  along  a  country  road,  pleasantly,  shaded  with 
young  sweet  laurels  and  with  olive-trees,  grey-leaved 
and  glimmering.  Soon  they  reached  the  Academy,  a 
public  gymnasium  which  Pericles  had  urged  the  people 
to  build  with  money  from  the  taxes. 

The  Academy  was  a  fine  stone  building  set  in  a 
garden  with  grassy  lawns  and  shade  trees  and  beautiful 
fountains.  Here  were  race  courses,  and  stretches  of 
sand  for  wrestling,  and  sheltered  walks  where  the  older 
men  could  meet  together  and  listen  to  the  talk  of 
philosophers,  the  lovers  of  wisdom.  The  place  was  a 
paradise  to  Cleon,  for  he  liked  to  watch  the  great 
chariot  races  that  were  held  here,  and  the  wrestling 
matches  of  the  famous  athletes. 

To-day  he  stripped  and  ran  several  races  with  other 
boys  of  his  own  age,  and  also  joined  in  a  wrestling 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  57 

match.  After  this  he  was  oiled  and  rubbed  by  the 
professional  rubber,  whose  services  were  paid  by  the 
state;  then  he  took  a  warm  bath.  The  rubbing  was 
very  soothing  to  his  limp  exhausted  body,  and  he 
knew  it  would  prevent  his  muscles  from  growing  stiff. 
Cleandros  was  glad  to  see  his  son  taking  so  much 
exercise,  for  he  wished  him  to  have  ruddy  cheeks,  a 
broad  chest,  and  strong  muscles. 

Meanwhile  Cleon's  little  kinswoman,  Chrysilla,  had 
spent  the  whole  day  indoors,  shut  up  in  the  dim  rooms 
of  the  women's  apartment.  She  was  learning  to  spin. 


THE  TRIAL 

Some  days  later  one  of  the  kinsmen  visited  Cleandros, 
and  told  him  that  he  had  been  invited  to  the  wedding  of 
Lysias,  who  was  marrying  a  young  girl  outside  the 
tribe.  According  to  the  law,  he  would  now  lose  his 
right  to  half  of  Chrysilla's  fortune,  through  failing  to 
marry  her,  but  he  still  refused  to  give  up  anything  but 
a  few  jewels  and  a  small  amount  of  cash. 

Cleandros  and  the  kinsman  talked  over  the  matter 
very  seriously,  and  they  decided  to  bring  a  lawsuit 
against  Lysias.  They  waited  until  the  wedding  festiv- 
ities were  over,  then  they  sent  out  a  legal  summons, 
and  laid  the  case  before  the  officials  of  the  city.  Soon 
the  day  was  set  for  the  trial. 

It  was  usual  for  the  Athenians  to  bring  their  families 
with  them  as  witnesses  to  a  lawsuit,  so  on  the  day  of 
the  trial,  Theodora,  Cleon,  and  several  of  the  kinsfolk 


58  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

were  present  with  Chrysilla  in  the  court  room.  There 
was  a  platform  at  one  end  of  the  court  room,  and  rows 
of  seats  below  for  the  jurymen,  who  numbered  nearly 
four  hundred.  The  city  official,  or  magistrate,  sat  on 
the  platform  in  the  center,  with  Lysias  and  his  friends 
on  his  right,  and  Cleandros  and  the  kinsfolk  on  his  left. 
Cleandros,  speaking  for  Chrysilla,  was  the  plaintiff  in 
the  case;  Lysias  was  the  defendant. 

Below  the  platform  stood  two  big  jars,  a  bronze  jar 
and  a  wooden  jar.  As  the  jurymen  filed  in,  each  one 
was  given  two  little  round  disks,  one  solid,  the  other 
pierced  with  a  hole.  These  were  to  be  used  for  voting; 
the  solid  disk  was  to  be  used  if  the  defendant  was 
considered  innocent,  the  pierced  one  if  he  was  con- 
sidered guilty.  At  the  end  of  the  trial  each  juryman 
would  drop  into  the  bronze  jar  the  disk  that  he 
wished  to  have  counted.  The  other  disk  was  dropped 
into  the  wooden  jar,  and  was  not  counted. 

Cleandros  was  glad  to  see  that  nearly  four  hundred 
men  were  present  as  jurymen,  for  he  felt  that  there 
was  safety  in  numbers.  "Lysias's  riches  will  not  help 
him  in  this  trial,"  he  thought  to  himself,  "for  he  cannot 
have  given  bribes  to  four  hundred  men." 

The  trial  began  with  a  short  sacrifice  to  the  gods, 
then  Cleandros  and  Lysias  both  swore  a  solemn  oath 
that  they  would  tell  the  truth.  After  this,  Cleandros 
was  asked  by  the  magistrate  to  state  his  case.  He  rose 
up  and  said: 

"Citizens  of  Athens,  the  father  of  my  kinswoman, 
Chrysilla,  was  killed  in  the  first  month  of  the  war. 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  59 

Her  mother  being  already  dead,  he  thus  left  his  only 
child  an  orphan  at  the  age  of  eleven.  He  possessed 
a  large  fortune  of  nearly  fourteen  talents.  In  his  will 
he  gave  his  daughter  in  marriage,  with  all  her  fortune, 
her  household,  and  her  jewels,  to  his  brother  Lysias, 
according  to  the  law.  Lysias  therefore  took  over  the 
management  of  the  fortune  immediately,  and  has 
continued  it  for  the  last  twelve  months.  Now  at  the 
close  of  the  year  he  has  taken  another  for  his  wife,  and 
he  refuses  to  hand  over  anything  more  than  the  house, 
a  few  jewels,  and  a  small  amount  in  money.  According 
to  the  law,  having  failed  to  marry  the  heiress,  he 
should  hand  over  half  of  her  fortune,  that  is,  the  sum 
of  seven  talents. 

"Citizens  of  Athens,  the  father  of  my  kinswoman 
left  two  workshops,  each  with  a  large  trade.  One  is  a 
sword  factory,  employing  thirty-two  or  thirty-three 
slaves,  the  other  is  a  chair  factory,  employing  twenty 
chair  makers.  These  factories  together  should  bring 
in  a  yearly  profit  of  about  forty  minas.  Besides  these 
factories  he  left  ivory,  iron,  and  bronze,  which  they 
are  using  in  the  shops,  and  also  wood  for  the  chairs.  In 
addition,  he  left  a  house,  with  furniture  and  plate  and 
gold  ornaments.  He  also  left  sums  of  money  placed  in 
various  banks  and  invested  in  foreign  trade.  I  have  a 
list  here  giving  the  exact  amounts.  During  the  last 
year  my  kinswoman  has  received  almost  no  payments. 
And  now  Lysias  has  failed  to  marry  her,  so  that, 
according  to  the  law,  he  should  give  up  half  her  fortune, 
also  paying  interest  for  one  year.  I  ask  you,  jurymen, 


60  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

to  uphold  the  rights  of  an  orphan,  who  is  too  young 
to  defend  herself.  Her  hapless  father  lies  in  dust  and 
nothingness.  He  gave  up  his  life  in  defense  of  Athens. 
To  give  justice  to  his  child  is  the  least  that  you, 
citizens  of  Athens,  can  do  in  return." 

So  saying,  Cleandros  ended  his  speech,  and  was 
applauded  by  the  jurymen. 

Lysias  now  arose  and  said  that  Cleandros  had 
greatly  exaggerated  the  whole  matter. 

"It  is  true  that  I  have  a  little  dispute  with  my  niece 
regarding  her  gold  trinkets,  but  as  soon  as  that  is 
settled,  I  shall  be  ready  to  go  into  the  question  of  her 
support,  in  such  a  manner  as  may  be  agreeable  to  her. 
It  is  extremely  distasteful  to  a  man  of  my  position  to 
have  to  discuss  in  public  such  private,  intimate  family 
affairs  as  these.  However,  I  will  say  that  my  niece's 
fortune  is  not  nearly  so  large  as  Cleandros  pretends. 
Gentlemen  of  the  jury,  this  man  is  playing  on  your 
feelings  of  reverence  for  the  dead  soldiers,  in  order  that 
he  may  selfishly  enrich  himself,  in  order  that  he  may 
take  my  place  as  legal  guardian  of  my  kinswoman,  and 
so  control  her  money.  You  see  how  he  has  brought 
the  children  with  him  into  this  law  court,  where  no 
young  children  should  be  allowed.  There  they  sit  with 
bent  heads,  poor,  timid,  shrinking  little  lambs!  Soon 
they'll  be  bleating  for  mercy!" 

The  jurymen  looked  toward  Chrysilla,  who  im- 
mediately burst  into  a  flood  of  tears.  Her  little  droop- 
ing figure  and  her  white,  tearful  face  made,  indeed,  an 
appealing  picture. 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  61 

The  magistrate  asked  Cleandros  to  answer  these 
charges.  Cleandros  replied: 

"In  answer  to  the  last  charge,  I  will  say  that  I  have 
made  no  request  to  become  the  legal  guardian  of  the 
heiress.  This  matter  is  for  the  jury  to  decide.  Then 
as  regards  the  property,  I  have  state  papers  here  prov- 
ing'that  the  fortune  is  worth  fully  fourteen  talents,  be- 
cause the  taxable  value  is  three  talents.'  Such  a  tax 
is  paid  only  by  wealthy  men.  The  fortune,  in  fact,  is 
so  large  that  it  cannot  be  hidden  from  the  state, 
even  by  Lysias." 

Again  the  jurymen  applauded. 

Lysias  now  said  that  the  factories  had  formerly  been 
of  great  value,  but  that  almost  no  profits  had  been 
made  during  the  last  twelve  months.  He,  too,  produced 
accounts,  and  laid  them  before  the  magistrate. 

At  this  Cleandros  brought  out  a  bill  signed  by  sev- 
eral well-known  merchants,  proving  that  the  foremen 
of  the  factories  had  purchased  not  only  food  for 
the  workmen,  but  also  large  quantities  of  material  for 
the  trade;  that  is,  ivory,  iron,  bronze,  and  wood.  He 
appealed  to  the  jurymen:  "It  is  unbelievable,"  he 
said,  "that  a  sword  factory  should  not  bring  in  large 
profits  during  a  war/' 

The  jurymen  applauded  again  loudly,  like  the 
audience  at  a  theater,  and  it  was  clear  that  most  of 
them  were  convinced  of  Lysias's  dishonesty.  One  man 
whispered  to  his  neighbor,  "I  don't  like  the  looks  of 
that  fellow."  However,  Lysias  made  a  long  speech  that 
had  been  written  out  for  him  by  a  professional  writer 


62  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

of  legal  speeches.  It  bored  the  jurymen  and  they 
hardly  listened  to  it.  Then  some  of  the  kinsmen  sitting 
with  Cleandros  stated  that  Cleandros  would  be,  in 
their  opinion,  the  best  possible  guardian  for  the  heiress, 
and  they  set  aside  their  own  claims. 

When  all  the  speeches  were  finished,  the  magistrate 
said,  "The  case  is  ended.  Let  justice  shine  out  like  a 
star  upon  its  foes." 

Thereupon  the  jurymen  filed  out  of  the  court  room, 
dropping  their  disks  into  the  two  jars  as  they  went. 
The  votes  were  now  counted,  and  the  bronze  jar  was 
found  to  be  filled  with  pierced  disks.  The  jurymen  had 
voted,  almost  to  a  man,  against  Lysias. 

The  magistrate  now  quoted  the  words  with  which 
the  Athenian  Assembly  was  always  opened:  "When 
the  laws  are  written,  then  the  weak  and  the  wealthy  are 
both  equals.  Armed  with  right,  the  less  overcomes  the 
great.  Thus  freedom  speaks."  Then  he  told  Lysias 
that  he  had  been  judged  a  dishonest  guardian.  He 
would  have  to  pay  a  fine  to  the  state,  and  also  give  up 
to  Chrysilla  the  sword  factory,  which  was  worth  seven 
talents.  From  this  time  on  Cleandros  would  be  the 
legal  guardian  of  the  heiress,  who  would  be  free  to 
marry  whom  she  pleased. 

Chrysilla  was  greatly  relieved  at  the  outcome  of  the 
trial,  and  when  she  was  asked  whether  she  would  be 
glad  to  live  in  the  household  of  her  new  guardian,  a 
smile  flitted  across  her  pale  little  face,  and  she  whis- 
pered that  she  would  be  very  willing,  and  would  try  her 
best  to  take  the  place  of  a  daughter.  Cleandros  and 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  63 

Theodora,  on  their  side,  promised  that  they  would 
love  and  protect  her  like  a  father  and  mother.  So  the 
trial  ended  happily  for  them. 


THE  FUNERAL  SPEECH  OF  PERICLES 

In  the  next  winter,  following  the  law  of  their  fathers, 
the  Athenians  held  the  public  funeral  of  those  who  had 
fallen  in  the  war.  It  was  their  custom  to  burn  the 
bodies  of  their  dead,  and  then  bury  the  ashes  and  the 
bones  in  marble  tombs. 

The  bones  of  the  dead  soldiers  were  exposed  on  a 
covered  platform  for  three  days,  during  which  time 
many  Athenians  brought  offerings  of  wine  and  oil  and 
set  them  beside  their  dead  kinsfolk.  On  the  third  day, 
the  bodies  were  laid  in  ten  coffins  of  cypress  wood,  one 
for  each  tribe.  These  were  put  on  carriages  and  driven 
to  the  burial  ground.  One  empty  couch  covered 
with  a  winding  sheet  was  also  borne  for  the  missing 
soldiers  whose  bodies  had  not  been  found  on  the  battle 
field.  It  was  beside  the  chariot  bearing  this  empty 
couch  that  Chrysilla  walked,  accompanied  by  Clean- 
dros,  Theodora,  Cleon,  and  many  more  of  her  kinsfolk. 
There  was  a  long  procession  and  a  great  crowd  of 
people  were  present.  All  kept  silence  until  the  public 
burial  ground,  a  beautiful  meadow  outside  the  city,  was 
reached.  There,  a  sacrifice  was  offered  to  the  gods, 
after  which  the  coffins  were  let  down  into  the  tombs. 

The  solemn  hush  was  broken  only  by  the  sobbing  of 
some  mother  of  the  dead.  Out  of  the  great  audience 


64 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


of  thousands  of  people  rose  up  Pericles,  to  make  the 
funeral  speech.  He  wore  the  helmet  of  a  general.  His 
voice  was  grave  and  quiet. 

1 "  Before  I  praise  the  dead,  the  soldiers  of  Athens,  I 
should  like  to  show  how  Athens  has  risen  to  power; 

under  what  government 
and  through  what  man- 
ner of  life  our  city  has 
become  great. 

"Our  form  of  govern- 
ment, democracy,  does 
not  enter  into  rivalry 
with  the  governments  of 
other  nations.  We  do  not 
copy  our  neighbors,  but 
are  an  example  to  them. 
It  is  true  that  we  should 
be  called  a  democracy,  a 
government  of  the  peo- 
ple, because  our  govern- 
ment is  in  the  hands  of  the  many,  not  of  the  few.  But 
while  the  law  gives  equal  justice  to  all  in  their  private 
disputes,  still  the  special  claim  of  excellence  is  also  recog- 
nized. When  a  citizen  is  in  any  way  distinguished,  he  is 
given  a  high  position  in  the  public  service  as  the  reward 
of  special  merit.  Poverty  is  no  bar,  for  a  man  may  help 
his  country  however  poor  he  may  be.  Our  public  life 
is  open  to  all  and  in  our  private  life  there  is  freedom 
and  independence.  If  our  neighbor  thinks  differently 

1  Adapted. 


PERICLES 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  65 

from  us,  and  does  what  he  likes,  we  are  not  suspicious 
of  him,  and  we  do  not  put  on  sour  looks  at  him,  which, 
though  harmless,  are  not  pleasant.  While  we  are  thus 
free  and  easy  in  our  private  life,  there  is  a  spirit  of 
reverence  in  our  public  acts.  We  are  prevented  from 
doing  wrong  by  respect  for  authority  and  for  the  laws, 
especially  those  which  protect  the  injured. 

"And  we  have  not  forgotten  to  provide  recreation  for 
our  weary  spirits  and  rest  from  toil.  We  have  regular 
games  and  sacrifices  throughout  the  year.  At  home 
the  style  of  our  life  is  simple  and  beautiful,  and  the  de- 
light which  we  daily  feel  in  the  beautiful  things  that 
surround  us  helps  to  banish  sadness.  Because  of  the 
greatness  of  our  city  the  fruits  of  the  whole  earth  flow 
in  upon  us,  so  that  we  enjoy  the  goods  of  other  coun- 
tries as  freely  as  our  own. 

'Then  again,  our  military  training  is  in  many  ways 
better  than  that  of  our  enemies,1  because  we  depend, 
not  on  discipline  or  trickery,  but  upon  our  own  hearts 
and  hands.  In  the  matter  of  education,  while  they 
from  early  youth  are  always  undergoing  difficult, 
wearisome  military  exercises  which  are  to  make  them 
brave,  we  live  at  ease;  and  yet,  when  the  time  comes, 
we  are  equally  ready  to  face  the  dangers  that  they 
face.  We  prefer  to  meet  danger  with  a  light  heart. 

'Thus  our  city  is  equally  admirable  in  peace  and 
war.  We  are  lovers  of  the  beautiful,  and  we  cultivate 
the  mind  without  loss  of  manliness.  Wealth  we  employ 
not  for  show,  but  when  there  is  a  real  use  for  it.  For 

1  The  Spartans. 


66  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

a  man  to  admit  that  he  is  poor  is  no  disgrace  with  us; 
the  true  disgrace  is  in  doing  no  work  to  avoid  poverty. 
An  Athenian  does  not  neglect  the  state  because  he 
takes  care  of  his  own  household,  and  even  those  of  us 
who  are  engaged  in  business  have  a  very  fair  idea  of 
politics.  We  alone  among  nations  look  upon  a  man 
who  takes  no  interest  in  public  affairs  as  a  useless 
person.  To  sum  up,  I  say  that  Athens  is  the  school 
of  Greece. 

"Such  is  the  city  for  whose  sake  these  soldiers  nobly 
fought  and  died.  They  could  not  bear  the  thought 
that  Athens  might  be  taken  from  them.  Every  one  of 
us  who  lives  should  also  gladly  work  and  toil  for  her 
as  they  have  done.  They  who  gave  their  bodies  to 
Athens  receive  praise  that  will  never  die,  and  with  it 
the  grandest  of  all  tombs,  a  place  in  the  memories  of 
men.  For  the  whole  earth  is  the  tomb  of  famous  men, 
and  their  story  is  written  not  only  in  stone  over  their 
tombs,  but  lives  on,  for  always,  in  memory,  woven  into 
the  stuff  of  other  men's  lives. 

"We  have  now  paid  our  debt  of  gratitude  to  our 
soldiers  only  in  part,  by  giving  honor  to  them  at  this 
public  funeral.  It  remains  for  us  to  support,  at  public 
expense,  until  they  are  grown  up,  such  of  their  orphans 
as  are  poor  and  needy.  This  is  the  prize  with  which, 
as  with  a  wreath,  Athens  crowns  her  sons  living 
and  dead. 

"And  now,  when  you  have  paid  reverence,  every  one 
to  his  own  dead,  you  may  depart." 

So  Pericles  ended  his  speech. 


THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS  67 

The  kinsfolk  of  Chrysilla  stood  for  a  while  with  her 
near  her  father's  tomb;  then  they  all  returned  home, 
still  silent,  remembering  the  words  of  Pericles,  and 
filled  with  reverence  for  the  greatness  of  their  city. 

That  same  night  Cleandros  repeated  to  his  son  the 
oath  that  he  would  have  to  swear  when  he  gained  his 
full  rights  as  a  citizen.  All  Athenian  youths  at  the  age 
of  eighteen  were  given  a  sword  and  a  shield  by  the 
state,  and  they  took  this  oath  of  citizenship  before 
beginning  their  military  training: 

I  swear  I  will  never  disgrace  my  holy  armor,  and  never  forsake 
my  comrades  in  the  ranks,  but  I  will  fight  for  the  holy  temples, 
and  for  the  welfare  of  all.  When  I  die  I  will  leave  my  city  not 
lessened,  but  greater  and  better  than  I  found  it.  I  will  obey  those 
who  from  time  to  time  are  in  authority,  and  I  will  obey  the  laws 
which  have  been  passed  by  the  people.  If  anyone  should  try  to 
destroy  these  laws,  I  will  defend  them  against  attack.  Further- 
more, I  will  honor  the  religion  of  my  country. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  "The  people  of  Athens  bow  down  to 
no  ruler;  in  this  city  the  folk  themselves  are  king."  In  what 
way  were  the  people  king?  Does  this  method  seem  better  than 
the  rule  of  a  king  like  Alcinous? 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  is  meant  by  a  "public"  fountain,  or  a  "public" 
building? 

2.  In  what  ways  were  the  people  of  Athens  more  civilized 
than  the  Homeric  Greeks? 

3.  What  is  the  exact  meaning  of  "oligarchy"?    Of  "democ- 
racy"? 

4.  Describe  the  point  of  view  of  an  Athenian  oligarch. 


68  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

5.  What  three  classes  of  people  were  not  allowed  to  attend 
the  Assembly? 

6.  What  do  you  think  of  the  treatment  of  Athenian  women 
at  the  time  of  this  story?     Compare  the  life  of  these  Athenian 
women  with  the  life  of  American  women  of  to-day. 

7.  Read  the  description  of  the  Athenian  Assembly;  compare 
with  our  modern  Congress  in  Washington,  and  explain  the  differ- 
ence between  direct  and  representative  democracy. 

8.  Were  the  schools  in  Athens  public  or  private  ?    Were  the 
gymnasiums  public  or  private? 

9.  Describe  the  Academy. 

10.  How  many  jurymen  attended  the  trial  of  Lysias? 

11.  How  was  the  vote  of  the  jurymen  taken?    Do  you  know 
how  a  jury's  vote  is  taken  nowadays  in  the  United  States? 

12.  Read  Pericles's  praise  of  Athenian  democracy,  and  com- 
pare it  with  our  modern  ideals  of  American  citizenship. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE 

1.  THE  TRIUMPH  OF  TITUS 

2.  THE  MARTYRDOM  OF  LAWRENCE 

After  the  death  of  Pericles,  the  citizens  of  Athens  vote 
for  bad  leaders  and  unwise  policies,  so  that  the  power 
and  glory  of  the  Athenian  democracy  are  lessened. 

We  now  move  westward  across  the  Mediterranean  Sea, 
from  Greece  to  Rome,  and  across  another  gulf  of  time- 
five  hundred  years. 

While  the  years  are  rapidly  passing,  we  see  first,  very 
dimly,  the  Roman  people  as  savage  tribes,  living  together 
in  villages  of  huts,  like  the  Indians,  under  a  simple 
tribal  government.  The  tribal  chiefs  become  kings,  then 
the  kings  of  Rome  give  way  to  a  republic,  and  the  people 
share  in  the  power  of  government.  But  the  later  history 
of  the  Roman  republic,  or  democracy,  is  a  continual 
fierce  struggle  for  power,  which  results  finally  in  the 
greatest  of  all  despotisms — the  Roman  Empire.  The 
Roman  Emperor  has  absolute  power.  During  the  republic, 
an  assembly  of  noble  Romans,  called  the  Senate,  had  great 
authority,  but  now  the  authority  of  the  Senate  has  become 
a  mere  shadow,  because  the  Emperor  is  not  obliged  to 
take  advice  from  anyone. 

The  Romans  are  great  soldiers,  and  they  have  conquered 
all  the  countries  around  them. 

69 


70  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Our  sight  widens,  and  the  blue  Mediterranean  Sea 
lies  beneath  us  like  a  lake,  glittering  with  white  foam  in 
a  strong  wind,  under  a  fiercely  hot  midsummer  sun.  The 
Mediterranean  is  now  a  Roman  lake,  because  the  Romans 
have  conquered  all  the  countries  that  border  it,  includ- 
ing Greece,  and  many  others  beyond.  To  the  north  lie 
gloomy  forests  inhabited  by  tribes  roaming  westward  or 
southward— Germans,  Gauls,  Britons,  and  Norsemen. 
Roman  soldiers  in  lonely  distant  outposts  on  the  fringe 
of  their  Empire  are  fighting  with  these  savages,  and  con- 
quering them,  stemming  and  pushing  back  the  barbarian 
tide  that  will  later  swallow  up  the  civilization  of  Greece 
and  Rome. 

Now  the  Roman  armies  have  conquered  Jerusalem  in 
Asia  Minor.  It  is  the  year  70  A.  D.,  and  the  people  of 
Rome  are  giving  a  triumph,  or  public  welcome,  to  their 
Emperor  Vespasian  and  his  son  Titus. 

The  buildings  of  Rome  resemble  in  many  details  the 
Athenian  buildings,  but  are  larger  and  not  so  beautiful. 
In  fact,  Roman  civilization  seems  to  us  in  many  ways 
an  imitation  of  Greek  civilization,  bigger  but  not  so  fine. 

THE  TRIUMPH  OF  TITUS  1 

All  the  people  of  Rome  are  pouring  out  through  the 
gates  of  their  city — the  mother  city  of  the  world — to 
welcome  Vespasian,  and  his  son  Titus,  the  conqueror 
of  Jerusalem. 

1  An  account  of  this  occasion  has  been  written  by  Josephus,  an  eye- 
witness. 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  71 

The  rabble  and  mob  of  the  people,  all  moving  in  the 
same  direction,  flow  like  a  great  wave  through  the 
streets.  In  the  richer  quarters,  the  crowds  are  stream- 
ing down  broad  avenues,  planted  with  plane  trees,  and 
passing  under  covered  walks  with  pillars  of  rose- 
colored  marble  brightly  hung  with  gold-embroidered 
curtains.  In  the  narrow  alleys  of  the  poorer  quarters, 
dirty  slaves  and  foreigners  are  elbowing  each  other. 
Men  pushing  little  carts  are  blocking  the  traffic.  They 
are  selling  sausages,  fried  fish,  smoky  cooked  meats, 
cakes,  toys,  and  other  trifles,  and  are  gathering  in  a 
harvest  of  small  money. 

One  man  in  the  crowd  is  saying  to  another,  "This  is 
to  be  a  great  show.  First  the  Senate  decided  to  give  a 
separate  triumph  for  Caesar1  and  each  of  his  sons,  but 
finally  it  was  decided  to  give  one  huge  triumph  for  the 
three  of  them,  a  celebration  more  costly  than  anything 
that  has  ever  before  been  given  in  Rome." 

The  other  answers,  with  discontent  in  his  voice,  "It 
is  high  time,  too.  Rome  has  been  very  dull  lately.  At 
the  last  celebration  that  Caesar  gave  us,  some  fifth-rate 
gladiators  were  brought  out,  so  feeble  you  could  have 
knocked  them  over  with  a  feather.  And  the  feast  after- 
ward was  very  poor.  The  Emperor  was  trying  to 
save  money." 

A  third  man,  overhearing  this  talk  as  he  passes  by, 
mutters  to  a  friend,  "Listen  to  that.  The  people  are 
never  satisfied.  They  want  free  bread,  free  baths,  and 

1  The  eleven  Roman  rulers  who  followed  Julius  Caesar  were  all  called 

Casar. 


72 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


free  shows.  So  much  is  given  to  them  that  they  have 
forgotten  how  to  work — they're  as  lazy  as  slaves. 
Everyone  in  Rome  is  repeating  the  new  catchword : 

Baths,  wine,  and  amusements, 
They  ruin  our  health, 
But  they  make  up  our  life. 

It's  true  enough." 

Now  the  crowds  pass  out  through  the  gates  of  the 

city  to  the  temple  of  Isis.    The  temples  and  the  public 

buildings  of  Rome  are  huge  in  size,  stretching  out  their 

thick  walls  in  wide  circles.  The  heavy  weight  of  them 
sinking  into  the  earth  is  like  the 
power  of  Rome  that  is  crushing  all 
the  countries  round  her,  making 
them  carry  for  hundreds  of  years 
the  heavy  weight  of  her  conquest. 
Outside  the  gates,  the  soldiers  of 
the  conquering  legions  are  camped, 
ready  to  take  their  part  in  the 
triumph.  They  are  hardy  men, 
bronzed  by  the  sun,  toughened  by 
stinging  sea  winds,  muscular  from 
their  long  marches.  They  wear 
short  tunics,  leggings  and  sandals, 
and  helmets  with  blood-red  plumes. 

Now  they  are  playing  dice  and  drinking  and  singing 

together  while  they  wait. 

In  a  beautiful  villa,  on  a  hill  near  Rome,  a  Senator 

is  being  arrayed  in  his  white  and  purple  robes,  for  the 


A  ROMAN  SOLDIER 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  73 

Senate,  too,  is  to  play  its  part  in  the  triumph.  The 
walls  of  the  Senator's  house  are  gilded  over  and 
painted,  the  floors  are  made  of  colored  stones,  and  in 
the  courtyard  there  is  a  beautiful  fountain  playing 
into  a  pool  of  fresh  water  stocked  with  water  lilies  and 
goldfish.  In  the  planning  of  the  villa,  no  money  was 
spared  to  provide  for  the  Senator  the  most  luxurious 
of  bodily  comforts.  There  are  three  marble  swimming 
baths,  filled  with  clear  green  water,  a  hot  bath,  a 
lukewarm  bath,  and  a  cold  bath,  where  the  Senator 
and  his  visitors  can  swim  and  float  at  their  ease,  their 
eyes  resting  on  beautiful  views  through  the  low 
windows — views  of  the  distant  sea,  and  of  the  country- 
side. Around  the  villa  there  are  flower  gardens,  orange 
groves,  and  fruit  orchards,  tilled  by  hundreds  of  slaves, 
and  alive  with  the  twittering  of  rare  song  birds  and 
the  babbling  of  scented  fountains. 

The  Senator's  wife,  too,  is  making  her  toilet  in  her 
apartment,  waited  on  by  a  dozen  slave  women.  When 
at  last  the  lady  is  ready,  the  Senator  calls  for  his  litter, 
and  as  he  stands  for  a  moment  in  the  marble  hallway 
of  the  villa,  looks  at  a  row  of  marble  busts  showing  the 
stern,  cold  faces  of  Roman  Senators  of  earlier  days. 

The  Senator  says  gravely  and  bitterly  to  his  son, 

'These  men,  who  were  your  ancestors,  thought  highly 

of  themselves;    and   you,    therefore,    must   never   do 

anything  that  is  unworthy  of  them.     But  what  real 

dignity  or  pride  is  left  to  us  Senators  of  to-day?" 

While  he  was  making  himself  ready  for  the  triumph 
of  Titus,  the  Senator  had  been  thinking  of  the  shameful 


THE  SENATOR  RIDING  IN  HIS  LITTER 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  75 

condition  to  which  the  Roman  Senate  had  fallen  under 
the  Empire.  He  had  been  saying  to  himself:  "In  the 
days  of  the  republic,  the  Senate  of  Rome  was  an 
assembly  of  kings.  Now  its  power  is  a  mere  shadow. 
Why  should  we  call  ourselves  Senators?  We  are  merely 
the  puppets  of  the  Emperor.  To-day  we  shall  wear 
our  white  and  purple  robes,  but  our  part  in  the  show 
will  be  only  play-acting,  a  solemn  farce.  We  shall  have 
to  bend  our  stiff  necks  and  bow  low  before  Caesar 
with  the  other  officials  of  the  city,  because  that  is  all 
that  is  left  for  us  to  do." 

The  Senator's  litter  is  carried  along  rapidly  on  the 
shoulders  of  huge  black  slaves.  When  it  reaches  the 
city,  the  crowds  of  the  common  people  make  way  for 
it,  and  it  rides  like  a  ship  on  the  surface  of  the  waves. 
Near  the  temple  of  Isis,  the  Senator  leaves  his  wife 
and  son.  They  are  given  high  seats  from  which  they 
can  view  the  triumph. 

Now  Vespasian,  the  great  Emperor,  and  his  sons, 
Titus  and  Domitian,  come  out  of  the  temple.  They  are 
clothed  in  robes  of  purple  silk,  and  crowned  with 
laurel  wreaths.  The  people  greet  them  with  a  great 
shout.  "Hail,  Caesar,  god-like  Caesar!  Hail  Titus, 
Conqueror  of  Judea!  lo  triumphe!"  l  A  high  platform 
has  been  built  and  ivory  chairs  set  upon  it.  As 
Vespasian  and  his  sons  take  their  seats,  the  Senators, 
clad  in  white  and  purple,  come  forward  to  greet  them 
and  bow  down  before  them,  followed  by  all  the  officials 

1  A  Roman  shout  of  triumph,  equivalent  to  our  Hurrah.  There  is  no 
exact  translation. 


76 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


A  ROMAN  TRIUMPH  IN 


of  the  city  and  all  the  knights  of  Rome.  After  the 
greeting  of  the  Senate,  Vespasian  rises  and  makes  a 
sign  with  his  hand  which  puts  an  end  to  all  the  shouting 
of  the  people.  Then  he  covers  his  head  with  his  cloak 
and  utters  a  solemn  prayer. 

When  the  prayer  is  finished,  the  triumph  is  set 
forward,  and  the  great  procession  begins  to  wind  its 
way  into  the  city  through  the  Gate  of  Pomp,  like  the 
parade  of  a  mighty  circus. 

A  menagerie  of  wild  animals  leads  the  procession: 
tigers,  lions,  zebras,  giraffes,  leopards,  wolves,  and 
camels,  each  one  covered  with  hangings  of  silk  and 
velvet,  embroidered  with  gold  and  silver  and  many- 
colored  jewels.  The  animals  are  driven  by  strange- 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE 


77 


THE  TIME  OF  VESPASIAN 


looking  men  from  all  parts  of  the  earth.  In  a  few  minutes 
there  pass  by,  before  the  curious  gaze  of  the  Roman 
crowd,  wild  horsemen  from  the  plains  of  northern 
Asia,  yellow-bearded  Germans  from  the  Rhine,  blue- 
painted  barbarians  from  the  island  of  Britain,  majestic 
Arabs  from  the  desert,  black  giants  and  pygmies  from 
the  forests  of  central  Africa,  together  with  Persians 
and  Egyptians  and  Greeks,  savage  men  and  civilized, 
all  more  or  less  under  the  dominion  of  Rome,  and  bring- 
ing to  Rome  the  wealth  of  the  whole  world  —  pearls  and 
rubies  from  India,  wolfskins  from  Britain,  cedar  wood 
from  Lebanon,  silk  from  China,  and  ivory  from  Africa. 
"See  that  spotted  camel  with  a  long  neck  and  no 
hump!" 


78  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

"Look  at  the  elephant  picking  up  a  brown  man  with 
its  nose!" 

'The  soldier  driving  a  wolf  is  a  Briton.  The  Britons 
seem  to  act  like  human  beings  when  they  are  in  Rome; 
but  I've  heard  that  those  savages  from  up  north  are 
no  more  than  animals — they're  in  the  habit  of  running 
about  on  all  fours  when  they  are  at  home!" 

The  mob  is  closely  packed,  like  a  herd  of  sheep,  and 
the  people  all  strain  forward  in  order  to  see  as  much  as 
possible. 

"Oh,  how  tiresome!"  complains  a  woman.  'There, 
the  fringe  of  my  cloak  is  all  torn.  For  heaven's  sake, 
sir,  try  to  be  more  careful." 

"I  can  hardly  help  myself,"  answers  the  man  behind 
her,  "but  I  will  be  as  careful  as  I  can." 

After  the  animals,  come  the  captives  and  the  spoils 
of  Judea.  Simon,  the  leader  of  the  Jews,  is  dragged 
along  with  a  rope  round  his  neck,  and  he  is  followed  by 
seven  hundred  Jewish  captives,  loaded  with  chains, 
but  dressed  in  silken  garments. 

Then  come  a  number  of  great  wagons,  some  of  them 
four  stories  high,  carrying  pictures  and  theatrical 
representations  of  the  war  with  the  Jews.  There  are 
pictures  of  the  burning  of  cities,  the  laying  waste  of  a 
fair  country,  the  destroying  and  pillaging  of  rich 
temples.  Everywhere  there  is  a  great  use  of  silver 
and  gold  and  ivory,  many-colored  jewels,  and  costly 
materials. 

In  their  turn,  the  theatrical  representations  pass  out 
of  sight.  Next  appear  the  spoils  of  the  temple  at 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  79 

Jerusalem.  The  most  sacred  treasures  of  the  Jews, 
guarded  by  them  for  centuries  in  the  innermost  shrine 
of  their  dim  temple,  the  Holy  of  Holies,  are  now  car- 
ried along  in  mockery  and  triumph,  under  the  blazing 
sunlight  of  Rome — the  Golden  Table  for  the  Shew- 
Bread,  the  Silver  Trumpets,  the  Seven-Branched 
Candlesticks,  and  the  Tables  of  the  Ten  Command- 
ments of  Moses. 

For  a  moment  the  Roman  crowd  is  silent,  witnessing 
the  shame  of  a  great  religion.  Then  the  silence  is 
broken  with  a  great  roar,  "  lo  triumphe!" 

The  sacred  symbols  pass  by,  and  the  procession 
flows  on  like  a  great  river. 

One  woman  murmurs  to  another,  "The  Jews  have  a 
strange  religion,  so  I  am  told.  Whatever  is  held  sacred 
by  the  Romans  is  scorned  by  the  Jews.  The  God  of 
the  Jews  is  said  to  be  a  great,  governing  mind,  that 
guides  and  directs  the  whole  of  nature,  a  mind  without 
a  body,  and  so  the  Jews  bow  down  to  no  idols  or  statues, 
as  we  do.  Their  religious  services  are  very  different  from 
our  own — gloomy  and  full  of  an  absurd  seriousness." 

Now,  at  the  sight  of  the  Roman  soldiers  marching 
shoulder  to  shoulder,  there  rises  another  great  burst  of 
shouting. 

Tramp,  tramp,  tramp,  the  Victorious  Legion  marches 
by,  the  Indomitable  Legion  and  the  Spanish  Legion. 
" lo  triumphe!  lo  triumphe!"  The  applause  is  a  con- 
tinuous roar,  for  the  people  of  Rome  are  wild  with 
enthusiasm  for  their  army.  They  know  that  the  whole 
Empire  rests  on  the  strength  of  the  Roman  army. 


80  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

As  the  soldiers  march  by,  they  sing  an  old  Roman 
chant: 

We  as  one  man  have  killed  thousands  upon  thousands  upon 

thousands. 

Thousands  of  times  may  he  drink  who  kills  a  thousand, 
Nor  yet  will  he  drink  as  much  wine  as  the  blood  he  has  shed! 

Behind  the  ranks  of  the  Imperial  Guard  appear  two 
golden  chariots.  The  Emperor  Vespasian  stands  in  the 
one,  and  his  son  Titus  stands  in  the  other.  Domitian, 
the  second  son,  rides  on  a  horse  alongside,  making  a 
glorious  appearance  in  his  triumphal  robes. 

"Hail,  Caesar!"  shouts  the  crowd.  "Hail,  divine 
Caesar,  god-like  Caesar!  Hail,  Titus,  Conqueror  of 
Judea!" 

The  procession  ends  with  the  chariot  of  the  Emperor, 
and  the  mob  breaks  up  and  streams  behind  it,  in 
disorder,  into  the  city.  When  the  golden  chariot 
reaches  the  temple  of  Jupiter  on  the  Capitol  Hill,  the 
people  stand  still  and  wait,  for  it  is  the  custom  at  a 
Roman  triumph  for  the  crowd  to  wait  here  until  the 
news  is  brought  of  the  killing  of  a  conquered  general. 
Soon  a  messenger  arrives,  blowing  a  silver  trumpet. 

"  Simon,  the  leader  of  the  Jews,  is  dead.  He  has  been 
hurled  down  from  the  Tarpeian  Rock  into  the  river 
Tiber,  as  a  human  sacrifice  to  the  gods  of  Rome." 

The  people  set  up  a  shout  of  joy,  and  begin  to  offer 
sacrifices  on  the  altars  of  Jupiter. 

When  the  sacrifices  are  ended,  the  Emperor  goes  into 
his  palace,  and  entertains  great  numbers  of  the  people 
at  a  feast. 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  81 

The  Senator  and  his  wife  pass  through  the  forecourt 
of  the  palace,  where  there  is  a  gigantic  statue  of  the 
Emperor  Nero,  a  hundred  feet  high.  Then  they  are 
led  into  a  vast  dining  hall,  gilded  over  and  studded 
with  jewels  and  mother-of-pearl,  and  lighted  with  a 
multitude  of  bright  lamps.  The  walls  and  the  ceiling 
are  fitted  with  ivory  panels  that  can  be  shifted  so 
as  to  shower  down  flowers  and  sprays  of  fragrant  scent 
upon  the  guests. 

No  money  has  been  spared  to  make  the  feast  a  mag- 
nificent one.  For  the  first  course  there  are  peahens'  eggs, 
roasted  quails,  and  sows'  breasts.  Then  slaves  carry 
in  a  huge  tray,  on  which  is  set  a  boar  of  great  size. 
Hanging  on  the  boar's  tusks  are  two  little  palm-leaf 
baskets,  full  of  nut-shaped  dates.  All  around  the  boar 
lie  little  pigs  made  of  pastry.  A  slave  slashes  open  the 
side  of  the  boar  vigorously  with  a  hunting  knife,  and 
a  flock  of  live  thrushes  fly  out  through  the  opening. 
The  birds  are  tame,  and  are  soon  caught  as  they  flut- 
ter around  the  dining  hall.  One  is  given  to  each  guest 
as  a  pet. 

Now  appears  another  huge  tray,  with  a  centerpiece 
on  it  of  colored  pastry  fashioned  like  a  garden  with 
trees  hung  with  apples,  grapes,  and  every  sort  of  fruit. 
The  guests  snatch  eagerly  at  the  fruit,  and  then  laugh, 
discovering  the  trick,  for  all  the  cakes  and  all  the 
apples,  when  pressed  the  least  bit,  squirt  saffron  water 
into  their  faces.1 

1  A  dinner  like  this  is  described  in  a  Latin  story  called  Trimalckio'j 

Feast. 


82  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Course  after  course  is  brought  in,  and  so  the  feast 
goes  on,  until  the  guests  have  eaten  so  much  that  they 
are  sickened  by  the  sight  of  more  food. 

The  Senator  says  to  his  wife,  "The  spoils  of  Judea 
will  more  than  pay  for  this  entertainment.  And  from 
now  on,  the  Jews  will  pay  greater  tribute  to  Rome, 
so  that  the  Emperor's  treasury  will  be  richer  than 
ever.  Caesar  dips  his  hands  deeply  into  the  golden 
stream  of  tribute  which  pours  into  Rome  from  all  the 
conquered  countries." 

THE  MARTYRDOM  OF  LAWRENCE 

Two  centuries  later,  the  pride  and  wealth  of  the 
Roman  Empire  were  fighting  against  the  spreading 
influence  of  the  Christian  religion. 

One  evening  in  the  year  258,  during  the  reign  of  the 
Emperor  Valerian,  two  young  boys  were  walking  over 
the  great  bare  plain  that  surrounds  Rome.  It  was 
growing  dark,  when  a  strange  sight  caught  their  eyes. 
In  the  distance,  out  on  the  plain,  there  was  a  stream  of 
shadowy  forms  slipping  through  the  twilight,  which, 
when  they  reached  a  certain  point,  suddenly  disap- 
peared as  if  by  magic. 

Out  of  curiosity,  the  boys  walked  up  to  this  place, 
and  found  a  hole  in  the  earth  leading  into  a  dark, 
underground  passage.  They  climbed  down  and  dis- 
covered a  network  of  underground  corridors,  dimly 
lit  here  and  there  by  lanterns  on  the  walls.  After 
they  had  crept  along  some  distance,  they  began  to 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE 


83 


ENTRANCE  TO  THE  CATACOMBS 

be  afraid  that  they  might  lose  their  way.  Looking 
around  them,  they  saw  that  there  were  stone  tablets 
on  the  walls,  carved  with  rough,  uneven  letters. 
Peering  up  in  the  flickering,  uncertain  light  of  an  oil 
lamp,  the  elder  boy  read, 

Genella  Sleeps  in  Christ 
Aselus  Sleeps  in  Christ 

Martyrs  in  Peace 
Sweet  Souls  in  the  Place  of  Refreshment 

With  sudden  fear  in  his  voice,  he  cried  out,  "We 
must  be  in  the  tombs.  We  must  be  in  the  Catacombs 
among  dead  bodies." 


84  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

The  younger  brother  was  reading, 

Marcella  and  Five  Hundred  and  Fifty 
Martyrs  in  Christ 

All  was  silent  around  them,  and  dark  and  still  as  the 
dead. 

The  boys  crept  back,  but  they  found  themselves  in 
another  strange  passage,  and  here  they  read  the  epi- 
taphs of  Romans  who  were  not  Christians.  One  was, 

A  Mother  to  Her  Little  Son 
0  Heartless  Fortune  Who  Delights  in  Cruel 

Death 

Why  is  Maximus  so  Early  Snatched  From  Me 
He  Who  Lately  Used  to  Lie  Beloved  on  My  Bosom 

Another  ran  thus, 

Baths,  Wine,  and  Amusements, 

They  Ruin  Our  Health 

But  They  Make  Up  Our  Life 

Farewell  —  Farewell 

Among  these  epitaphs  there  was  one  very  old  one, 
dating  back  to  the  days  of  the  republic: 

Stranger,  what  I  have  to  say  is  short;  stand  near  and  read  it 
through.  Here  is  the  not  beautiful  tomb  of  a  beautiful  woman.  Her 
parents  gave  her  the  name  of  Claudia.  She  loved  her  husband  with  her 
whole  heart.  Two  sons  she  bore,  one  of  whom  she  left  above  the  earth, 
the  other  she  placed  under  the  sod.  Soft-voiced,  and  with  a  gentle 
spirit,  she  preserved  her  household  and  spun  her  flax.  I  have  spoken. 

Walking  hither  and  thither,  the  boys  tried  one 
passage  after  another,  but  came  no  closer  to  the 
entrance.  At  last  through  the  darkness,  they  heard  a 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  85 

faint  echo,  and  following  it  there  reached  them  strains 
of  music  and  the  sound  of  voices  singing  together  in 
unison.  It  led  them  on  to  a  little  chapel  brilliantly  lit 
with  candles  and  filled  with  kneeling  figures  shrouded 
in  veils.  These,  then,  were  the  shadowy  forms  they 
had  seen  slipping  through  the  twilight.  As  they  stood 
and  watched  from  the  door  of  the  chapel,  the  singing 
ceased,  and  an  old  man  standing  at  the  altar  stretched 
out  his  hands  and  blessed  the  congregation,  dismissing 
them  with  these  words: 

"You  have  gathered  together,  O  Christians,  in 
these  caverns,  to  sing  hymns  in  honor  of  the  martyrs 
and  the  saints  that  lie  buried  here,  having  died  in  the 
Lord;  to  sing  psalms  for  those  that  are  now  dying  in 
the  faith!  There  is  light  in  this  darkness;  there  is 
music  in  these  tombs." 

Upon  these  words,  the  congregation  arose  and  began 
to  file  out  of  one  of  the  passages;  the  two  boys,  mixing 
with  the  crowd,  followed.  They  soon  reached  the  open 
air  and  came  out  at  a  place  which  was  unfamiliar  to 
them,  but  they  made  their  way  back  to  the  city  by 
following  the  stream  of  people. 

When  the  boys'  father  heard  where  they  had  been, 
he  told  them  that  they  were  fortunate  to  have  escaped 
without  harm,  because  the  Emperor  had  ordered  a 
persecution  of  the  Christians,  and  soldiers  were  hunt- 
ing them. 

"The  Christians  have  many  strange  beliefs/'  he 
told  them,  "and  some  people  will  have  it  that  they 
practice  horrible  ceremonies  as  a  part  of  their  religious 


86  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

service.  However,  this  may  not  be  true,  since  you  say 
that  you  saw  nothing  of  the  kind.  But  one  thing  is 
certain,  they  are  traitors  to  the  Empire,  because  they 
refuse  to  burn  incense  on  our  altars  as  a  sign  of  their 
good  faith  to  Rome  and  to  Caesar.  In  their  refusal  they 
are  stiff-necked  and  stubborn  beyond  reason,  willing 
to  suffer  any  torture  or  martyrdom." 

A  few  days  later,  the  news  was  spread  throughout 
Rome  that  the  soldiers  of  the  Emperor  had  found  out 
the  hiding  place  of  the  Christians,  in  the  Catacombs, 
coming  upon  them  while  they  were  holding  a  service 
and  singing.  The  bishop,  an  old  man  with  a  white 
beard,  had  been  killed  then  and  there;  but  a  certain 
deacon  of  the  Christian  church,  named  Lawrence,  had 
been  taken  prisoner,  and  was  to  be  given  a  trial.  It 
was  believed  that  Lawrence,  in  the  name  of  his  church, 
had  been  collecting  great  quantities  of  money  and  other 
valuables  from  wealthy  persons  in  Rome  who  were 
secretly  Christians.  The  soldiers  had  taken  Lawrence 
prisoner  instead  of  killing  him  outright,  because  they 
wanted  him  to  deliver  up  this  money  to  the  Emperor. 
Lawrence  had  asked  for  three  days  in  which  to  collect 
the  treasures  of  the  church,  and  this  time  had  been 
granted.  The  trial  was  set  for  the  fourth  day. 

The  Roman  judge  who  tried  Lawrence  knew  that  the 
trial  was  to  be  only  a  mock  trial,  because  the  Christians 
were  persecuted  under  a  special  order  of  the  Emperor. 
Any  judge  would  be  forced  to  find  Lawrence  guilty, 
and  worthy  of  death,  if  he  refused  to  burn  incense  on 
a  Roman  altar. 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  87 

A  small  crowd  assembled  to  witness  the  trial, 
including  the  two  boys  who  had  lost  their  way  in  the 
Catacombs  and  stumbled  unawares  on  the  hiding 
place  of  the  Christians. 

Lawrence  was  standing  on  a  high  platform,  and 
around  him  was  a  great  multitude  of  poor  beggars, 
aged  men  and  women  in  rags,  lame  and  crooked, 
diseased  and  blind.  Lawrence  pointed  to  the  beggars 
and  said,  "I  have  collected  my  treasures;  behold 
them.  All  the  money  that  was  given  me,  I  gave 
straightway  to  the  poor.  The  poor  and  the  sick  are 
the  riches  of  the  Christian  church;  they  are  our  gold 
and  silver.  And  I  add  to  them  the  widows  and  the 
orphans;  these  are  our  pearls  and  rubies  and  pre- 
cious stones.  Take  this  wealth  for  Rome  and  for  the 
Emperor." 

"Are  you  a  Christian?"  asked  the  judge, 

Lawrence  replied,  "I  am  a  Christian.  I  am  a  deacon 
of  the  Christian  church." 

'You  were  a  deacon.  In  confessing  yourself  a 
Christian,  you  have  spoken  your  own  sentence  of 
death.  Have  you  any  defense  to  make?" 

And  Lawrence  answered,  "My  defense  is  that  I 
am  useful  to  men,  because  I  teach  even  unto  slaves 
the  value  of  the  human  soul.  In  our  church  all  men 
are  equal,  and  it  is  among  the  poor  and  despised  of 
Rome  that  our  faith  is  spreading  most  rapidly.  Some 
of  the  high  offices  of  our  church  we  have  given  to 
slaves,  for  in  the  eyes  of  God  a  slave  is  the  equal  of 
a  free  man/' 


88  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Then  the  judge  asked  Lawrence  if  he  would  be 
willing  to  burn  incense  on  a  Roman  altar,  as  a  sign  of 
his  good  faith  to  Caesar  and  to  Rome. 

Lawrence  refused  to  do  this,  and  then  repeated  the 
words  of  Jesus  Christ  to  his  followers: 

"Ye  know  that  the  princes  of  the  Gentiles  exercise 
dominion  over  them,  and  they  that  are  great  exercise 
authority  upon  them.  But  it  shall  not  be  so  among  you; 
but  whosoever  will  be  great  among  you  let  him  be 
your  minister,  and  whosoever  will  be  chief  among  you, 
let  him  be  your  servant." 

Whereupon  the  judge  read  out  the  sentence,  that 
Lawrence,  a  Christian,  was  condemned  to  be  roasted  to 
death  on  a  gridiron,  as  an  example  to  the  people. 

At  this  Lawrence  fell  into  a  deep  swoon.  His  body 
was  carried  away  and  roasted  to  death  on  a  gridiron, 
but  those  that  were  with  him  said  that  the  flames  could 
not  hurt  his  spirit. 

When  the  two  boys  returned  home  after  the  trial  of 
Lawrence,  their  father  repeated  his  opinion  that  the 
Christians  were  traitors,  and  worthy  of  punishment, 
but  still  he  believed  that  Lawrence  should  have  been 
given  a  fair  trial. 

"  Such  mock  trials  as  these  of  the  Christians,"  he  said 
in  indignation,  "should  not  be  allowed  in  an  age  like  our 
own.  They  are  a  dark  blot  on  our  Roman  civilization." 

He  told  his  sons,  too,  that  he  agreed  with  the  teach- 
ings of  Lawrence  concerning  the  rights  of  slaves. 

"  Some  of  the  leading  judges  of  Rome  have  now  come 
to  believe,  like  the  Christians,  that  all  men,  including 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  89 

slaves,  have  equal  rights  as  human  beings.  With  the 
Christians,  this  belief  is  a  part  of  their  religion.  With 
the  Romans  it  is  the  result  of  practical  experience  in 
the  law  courts." 

Again  our  view  widens,  and  we  see  the  Roman  Empire 
in  all  its  vastness. 

We  look  down  over  a  changed  Europe.  Wherever  the 
Roman  soldiers  have  marched  and  conquered,  they  have 
carried  with  them  the  civilization  of  Rome.  The  thick 
green  veil  of  the  ancient  forests  has  been  torn  down  and 
broken  in  places  by  the  axe  of  the  woodman.  In  the  con- 
quered  lands,  or  Roman  provinces,  big  cities  have  been 
built  on  the  plan  of  Rome,  and  they  are  surrounded  with 
cultivated  fields  and  pastures.  Connecting  the  cities  there 
are  long  white  lines  running  over  hundreds  and  hundreds 
of  miles,  from  north  to  south  and  crossing  each  other, 
carving  up  the  continent.  These  are  the  Roman  roads, 
built  of  great  blocks  of  stone,  so  solid  that  some  of  them 
are  to  last  two  thousand  years. 

Time  passes,  and  we  visit,  in  thought,  a  city  of  the 
Roman  provinces  in  the  fourth  century  after  Christ.  It  is 
well-built  and  ft) ell-drained,  like  a  modern  city.  We 
learn  that  the  Romans  have  educated  their  subjects,  and 
given  them  the  full  rights  of  Roman  citizenship.  Even 
slaves  are  beginning  to  receive  consideration  as  human 
beings.  For  a  moment  we  enter  a  law  court,  and  we  hear 
a  Roman  lawyer  saying  that  "  all  men,  enslaved  or  free, 
should  be  recognized  as  equals  under  the  law  of  nature, 
or  the  law  of  humanity"  This  is  one  of  the  great  prin- 


90  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

ciples  of  democracy  which  we  owe  to  Rome.  Those  who 
to-day  believe  in  lynch  law  are  setting  back  the  progress 
of  democracy  and  justice  by  almost  two  thousand  years. 

The  Roman  spirit  has  become  more  kindly,  but  there 
are  signs  of  weakness  in  this  fine  city  of  the  provinces. 
A  taxgatherer  is  trying  to  collect  taxes  for  the  Emperor. 
He  loudly  complains  that  the  citizens  are  giving  him  too 
little.  He  says  that  the  conquered  peoples  have  borrowed 
the  Roman  desire  for  ease  and  luxury,  but  that  they  have 
become  lazy  and  sluggish  like  slaves.  Out  in  the  fields 
the  countrymen  are  working  against  their  will,  without 
energy  and  without  ambition.  Though  Roman  law  has 
discovered  one  of  the  great  principles  of  democracy,  there 
is  very  little  democracy  or  freedom  in  the  government 
as  a  whole. 

Now  a  Roman  camp  comes  into  our  sight.  We  see  the 
soldiers  of  the  late  Empire,  and  many  of  them  are  pale 
and  flabby,  very  different  from  the  fierce,  hardy  fighters 
who  were  their  forefathers.  Nor  are  they  so  brave.  They 
know  that  it  is  becoming  more  and  more  difficult  to  pro- 
tect the  Empire  against  the  attacks  of  the  northern  tribes. 

Then  our  vision  sweeps  once  more  over  the  whole  con- 
tinent of  Europe. 

The  tribes  of  fair-haired,  blue-eyed  northerners,  strong 
and  restless,  are  migrating  from  one  country  to  another, 
fighting,  plundering,  and  pillaging.  Some  of  them  have 
become  civilized,  like  the  Romans;  others,. far  off  in  the 
wilds  and  backlands,  are  still  half-savage. 

In  wave  -after  wave  of  invasion,  the  northerners  beat 
against  the  resistance  of  the  Roman  armies.  Finally  the 


THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE  91 

tide  rises  and  breaks  through,  and  the  barbarians  sweep 
down  through  the  Empire.  In  the  year  4.55,  the  city  of 
Rome  is  sacked  by  Vandals.  We  see  the  great  civilization 
of  Greece  and  Rome  crumbling.  Heavy  mists  and  clouds 
gather  before  our  eyes,  and  there  passes  below  us  the  con- 
fusion that  is  known  as  the  Dark  Ages. 

Centuries  go  by.  Gradually  the  mists  of  our  ignorance 
rise,  and  we  see  the  life  below  us  becoming  more  settled. 
The  northerners  have  intermarried  with  the  subjects 
of  Rome,  and  the  descendants  of  these  mixed  races 
begin,  slowly  and  feebly,  to  build  up  a  new  civiliza- 
tion in  Europe. 

We  begin  to  wonder  what  are  the  habits  and  customs 
of  these  northern  tribes,  from  whom  so  many  of  the 
civilized  people  of  to-day  are  directly  descended. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  During  the  Roman  Empire,  democ- 
racy suffered  defeat  in  one  branch  of  government  but  gained  a 
lasting  victory  in  another.  Show  how  this  was  so. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  despotism? 

2.  What  were  the  effects  of  despotism  upon  the  character  and 
morals  of  the  Roman  mob? 

3.  Describe  the  luxuries  of  Rome. 

4.  What  was  the  Roman  Senate? 

5.  What  words  did  the  people  use  when  they  hailed  Caesar? 

6.  Was  the  Senator's  wife  allowed  to  attend  the  Emperor's 
feast? 

7.  Do  you  believe  it  is  good  for  a  man  to  live  in  such  great 
luxury  as  that  of  the  Roman  Emperor?   Why? 


92  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

8.  Compare  the  different  epitaphs  in  the  Catacombs,  and  say 
which  you  consider  the  most  beautiful. 

9.  What  did  the  Romans  think  of  the  early  Christians? 

10.  What  was  the  attitude  of  the  early  Christians  toward  the 
poor  and  the  slaves? 

11.  Why  was  the  new  justice  of  Rome  called   the  Law  of 
Humanity? 

12.  What  do  you  think  of  the   practice  of  lynching?     Give 
reasons  for  your  opinion. 


CHAPTER  V 

ICELAND;  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD    THING    AND  THE 
ALL-THING 

1.  GUNNAR  AND  HALLGERDA 

2.  HALLGERDA  STEALS  CHEESE  AND  BUTTER 

3.  THE  LAWSUIT 

4.  THE  DEATH  OF  GUNNAR 

The  people  from  whom  we  can  learn  the  most  about  the 
ancient  customs  of  the  northerners  are  the  Icelanders  of  the 
tenth  century,  living  on  the  remote  island  of  Iceland,  far 
up  in  the  northern  seas,  near  the  Arctic  Zone. 

The  language  of  these  Icelanders  resembles  Old  English 
and  Old  German.  The  Icelanders,  the  Norwegians,  the 
Swedes,  the  Germans,  and  the  English  are  all  descended 
from  the  same  ancient  tribe  called  the  Germanic  tribe,  and 
their  ancient  customs  are  very  much  alike. 

Let  us  imagine  that  we  are  journeying  from  Rome  to 
the  far  north,  passing  over  Europe  and  over  the  British 
Isles.  We  see  great  icebergs  floating  in  the  northern  seas, 
and  there  rises  up  to  us  the  song  of  Icelandic  seamen, 
pulling  at  their  oars: 

Magnus,  listen  to  our  mighty  song! 
Your  warship  dashed  over  big  sea  waves! 
Little  did  you  fear,  though  the  masts  were  quivering, 
Though  the  planks  of  the  boat,  ice-sprinkled,  cracked, 
Though  the  figurehead  rattled  in  the  rolling  waves! 
The  ocean  boiled  and  the  billows  were  tossing! 

93 


94  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

The  prow  of  the  wooden  Viking  boat  curls  high  up 
out  of  the  water.  It  is  carved  with  a  strange  figurehead 
from  which  icicles  hang. 

It  is  night,  and  the  dead  of  winter.  The  island  of  Ice- 
land appears  to  us,  covered  with  ice  and  snow  glittering 
blue-white  in  the  dazzling  light  of  the  moon  which  is 
shining  out  of  a  steel-blue  sky. 

On  a  lonely  farm,  we  see  an  old  Icelandic  house  that 
looks  something  like  a  polar  bear  sitting  on  its  haunches. 
The  prickly  thatch  of  the  roof  is  laden  with  deep  snow, 
like  soft  white  fur,  and  in  front  there  is  a  doorway  below 
two  pointed  gables,  like  a  bear  s  snout  and  ears.  Long 
icicles  reach  from  the  roof  almost  to  the  ground. 

Inside  the  house,  the  trunk  of  a  live  tree  is  growing  in 
the  middle  of  the  hall,  as  a  framework  to  the  whole  build- 
ing. There  is  an  open  fireplace  in  a  corner,  where  huge 
logs  of  wood  are  flaming  and  roaring.  A  little  boy,  with 
fair  hair,  blue  eyes,  and  a  snub  nose,  is  sitting  in  the  fire- 
light, listening  to  a  long  story  that  is  being  told  to  him  by 
an  old  man. 

As  we,  too,  listen,  we  learn  that  our  ancestors  of  the 
Germanic  tribes  had  many  strange,  half-savage  customs. 

The  Norsemen  knew  nothing  of  the  Roman  Law  of 
Humanity,  that  ""all  men  should  be  recognized  as  equals}' 
On  the  contrary,  the  lives  of  Norse  freemen  and  slaves 
were  considered  of  very  unequal  value.  On  most  of  the 
farms  in  Iceland  there  were  a  number  of  poor  servants,  or 
slaves,  called  "thralls."  These  miserable  men  were  much 
to  be  pitied,  because  their  lives  were  held  so  cheap.  There 
was  no  punishment  for  the  murder  of  a  thrall  beyond  the 


ICELAND  95 

payment  of  a  small  fine,  called  blood  money.  According 
to  Icelandic  law,  twelve  ounces  in  silver  was  considered  a 
fair  price  for  a  thrall,  but  when  a  freeman  had  been 
killed,  the  price  of  the  blood  money  was  from  one  hundred 
to  two  hundred  ounces  in  silver.  Killing  was  considered 
no  great  crime,  and  murders  were  very  common. 

Women  and  thralls  took  no  part  in  the  government  of 
Iceland,  which  was  a  direct  democracy  of  the  freemen. 
The  Icelanders  had  no  king  or  emperor.  The  freemen  gov- 
erned themselves,  meeting  together  for  that  purpose  in 
assemblies  that  they  called  "  Things."  The  entire  island 
was  divided  into  many  different  neighborhoods,  and  each 
neighborhood  had  its  own  meeting,  but  besides  all  the 
neighborhood  "  Things,"  there  was  one  big  meeting  called 
the  "  All- Thing,"  attended  by  all  the  freemen  of  Iceland. 
Here  laws  were  passed  concerning  the  whole  island,  and 
here  important  lawsuits  were  tried. 

The  story  that  the  old  Icelander  is  telling  is  the  story  of 
a  blood  feud,  part  of  an  old  Icelandic  neighborhood  tale. 

GUNNAR   AND    HALLGERDA1 

Once  a  man  named  Hauskuld  asked  his  friends  to  a 
feast,  and  his  brother  Hrut  was  there  and  sat  next  to 
him.  Hauskuld's  daughter  Hallgerda  was  playing  on 
the  floor  with  some  other  girls.  She  was  fair  of  face, 
and  tall  of  growth,  and  her  hair  was  as  soft  as  silk. 

1  Adapted  from  The  Saga  of  Burnt  Nyal,  translated  by  Sir  George 
Webbe  Dasent.  The  pictures  in  this  chapter  are  taken  from  a  book  of 
old  Scandinavian  sagas,  or  legends. 


96 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


It  was  so  long,  too,  that  it  came  down  to  her  knees. 
Hauskuld  said  to  Hrut,  "What  do  you  think  of  my 
girl?"  Hrut  was  silent.  Hauskuld  said  the  same  thing 
to  him  a  second  time,  and  then  Hrut  answered,  "The 

girl  is  fair  enough, 
and  many  will  suffer 
for  her  beauty;  but 
this  I  know  not, 
whence  thief's  eyes 
have  come  into  our 
race." 

Hallgerda  grew  up, 
and  became  most 
beautiful  to  look  up- 
on. She  was  so  tall, 
too,  that  she  was 
called  "Longcoat." 
Her  hair  was  so  long 
that  she  could  hide 
herself  in  it.  But  she 
had  a  bad  temper, 
and  she  was  wasteful 
and  hard-hearted. 
The  next  person  who  comes  into  the  story  is 
Gunnar. 

Gunnar  was  a  tall  man  in  growth  and  a  strong  man — 
best  skilled  in  fighting  of  all  Icelanders.  He  could  cut 
or  thrust  or  shoot  if  he  chose  as  well  with  his  left  hand 
as  with  his  right  hand,  and  he  cut  so  swiftly  with  his 
sword  that  three  swords  seemed  to  flash  through  the 


HALLGERDA 


ICELAND  97 

air  at  once.  He  could  leap  higher  than  his  own  height, 
and  he  could  swim  like  a  seal.  His  nose  was  straight, 
but  a  little  turned  up  at  the  tip.  His  hair  was  fair,  he 
was  blue-eyed,  and  bright-eyed,  and  ruddy-cheeked. 
The  most  gentle  of  men  was  he,  but  of  sturdy  body  and 
strong  will — a  fast  friend,  but  hard  to  please  when 
making  friends.  He  was  wealthy  in  goods.  He  had 
been  the  captain  of  a  ship,  but  now  he  lived  on  his  own 
land  as  a  farmer.  The  farms  in  Iceland  were  lonely  and 
far  apart,  so  that  men  saw  little  of  each  other,  stay- 
ing on  their  farms,  snow-bound,  through  the  wintry 
months,  but  in  the  summer  they  all  came  together  at 
the  Things,  and  there  they  formed  their  friendships. 

Nyal  was  the  name  of  Gunnar's  greatest  friend. 
Nyal,  too,  was  a  farmer,  wealthy  in  goods  and  hand- 
some of  face,  but  no  beard  grew  on  his  chin.  In  Ice- 
land at  that  time  it  was  thought  shameful  and  woman- 
ish for  a  man  to  have  a  smooth  cheek.  But  Nyal  was 
so  great  a  lawyer  that  his  equal  was  not  to  be  found. 
Wise,  too,  was  he,  and  fore-knowing  and  foresighted. 
Bergthora  was  the  name  of  his  wife.  Bergthora  was  a 
very  high-spirited,  brave-hearted  woman,  but  some- 
what hard-tempered. 

One  summer  Gunnar  and  Nyal  rode  to  the  All- 
Thing  together.  The  All-Thing  was  held  every  sum- 
mer out  in  an  open  field,  called  the  Thing-Field.  It 
lasted  several  days,  and  so  the  men  who  attended  it 
put  up  little  huts  where  they  could  sleep. 

Gunnar  and  Nyal  set  up  their  huts  and  stayed  to- 
gether for  perhaps  a  week.  In  the  daytime  they  went 


98  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

up  with  the  other  freemen  on  the  Hill  of  Laws,  for 
there  they  made  their  laws  and  settled  their  lawsuits; 
and  in  the  evenings  they  gathered  together  with  their 
friends  and  feasted,  and  listened  to  neighborhood 
stories.  Some  women  were  at  the  All-Thing,  but  not 
very  many. 

It  happened  one  day  that  Gunnar  came  down  from 
the  Hill  of  Laws,  and  passed  by  many  huts.  Presently 
he  saw  a  woman  coming  to  meet  him.  She  was  well- 
dressed  and  very  beautiful.  She  told  him  that  she 
was  Hallgerda,  Hauskuld's  daughter.  They  sat  them 
down  and  talked.  Hallgerda  was  so  clad  that  she  had 
on  a  red  dress,  with  a  scarlet  cloak  thrown  about  her 
that  was  trimmed  with  needlework  down  to  the  waist. 
Gunnar  was  also  clad  in  scarlet  clothes,  and  he  had  a 
great  gold  ring  on  his  arm. 

So  they  talked  long  together,  until  at  last  it  came 
about  that  he  asked  whether  she  were  unmarried.  She 
said,  "Yes,  so  it  is;  I  am  unmarried,  but  I  fancy 
there  are  not  many  men  who  would  dare  run  the  risk 
of  marrying  me!" 

"Do  you  think  no  man  is  good  enough  for  you?" 

"Not  that,"  she  answered,  "but  still  I  am  said  to  be 
hard  to  please  in  husbands." 

"How  would  you  answer,  if  I  were  to  ask  for  you?" 

"If  you  have  any  mind  that  way,  go  and  see  my 
father." 

Gunnar  went  to  see  Hauskuld  and  Hrut  in  their  hut, 
and  they  told  him  all  unasked  about  Hallgerda's 
temper,  and  Gunnar  at  first  thought  there  was  more 


ICELAND  99 

than  enough  that  was  wanting,  but  at  last  it  came  about 
that  they  struck  a  bargain,  and  the  marriage  took 
place.  Hallgerda  took  the  housekeeping  of  Gunnar's 
house  in  her  charge,  and  she  stood  up  for  her  rights  in 
word  and  deed. 

Now  it  was  the  custom  between  Gunnar  and  his 
friend  Nyal  that  each  invited  the  other  to  a  feast, 
winter  and  winter  about,  for  friendship's  sake;  and  it 
was  Gunnar's  turn  to  go  and  feast  at  Nyal's.  So  Gun- 
nar and  Hallgerda  set  off  for  Nyal's  farm,  where  Nyal 
gave  them  a  hearty  welcome. 

Down  the  length  of  Nyal's  hall  were  seats  where  the 
men  folk  sat,  but  the  women  folk  always  sat  on  a  cross- 
bench  upon  a  platform  at  the  upper  end.  Bergthora, 
Nyal's  wife,  went  up  to  the  cross-bench  with  one  of 
her  daughters-in-law,  and  said  to  Hallgerda,  <;'You 
must  give  up  your  place  to  my  daughter-in-law." 

Hallgerda  answered,  "To  no  one  shall  I  give  up 
my  place!  I  will  not  be  driven  into  the  corner  for 
anyone!" 

From  this  time  on  there  was  bad  feeling  between 
Hallgerda  and  Bergthora,  though  their  husbands  re- 
mained fast  friends. 

After  Hallgerda  came  home  from  the  feast,  she  began 
to  wonder  how  she  might  pay  back  Bergthora  for  her 
rudeness.  She  wanted  to  spite  Bergthora  and  she  also 
wanted  to  make  trouble  between  Gunnar  and  Nyal. 
In  the  end  she  decided  to  send  one  of  her  thralls  to  kill 
one  of  Nyal's  thralls.  She  knew  that  Gunnar  was  so 
wealthy  that  he  could  easily  afford  to  pay  Nyal  the 


100          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

blood  money  for  a  thrall,  but  she  hoped  that  some 
dispute  might  arise  over  the  payment. 

So  she  waited  until  the  next  summer,  when  Gunnar 
and  Nyal  rode  away  as  usual  to  the  neighborhood 
Thing  together.  As  soon  as  their  backs  were  turned, 
she  told  one  of  her  housefolk  to  kill  one  of  the  thralls 
who  worked  for  Bergthora;  then  later  she  sent  word  to 
Gunnar,  at  the  Thing,  to  tell  him  of  the  killing.  Gunnar 
said  no  hard  words  of  Hallgerda  to  the  messengers, 
and  those  around  him  did  not  know  at  first  whether 
he  thought  well  of  it,  or  ill.  A  little  later,  he  stood  up 
and  asked  his  men  to  go  with  him  to  Nyal's  booth. 

Nyal  held  his  tongue  while  Gunnar  told  him  the  whole 
story.  Then  he  said,  "You  must  not  let  her  have  her 
way  in  everything.  But  I  will  not  push-  this  matter 
very  far.  We  can  settle  it  privately  between  us  here. 
You  shall  pay  me  twelve  ounces  in  silver,  a  fair  price 
for  a  thrall,  but  I  will  add  this  condition,  that  if  any- 
thing happens  from  our  farm  later  on,  for  which  you 
will  have  to  ask  a  payment,  you  will  not  be  less  easy 
as  to  terms." 

Gunnar  paid  the  money  out  of  hand,  and  rode  home. 

In  Iceland  the  law  of  revenge  ruled:  an  eye  for  an 
eye,  a  tooth  for  a  tooth,  a  life  for  a  life.  The  next 
summer,  Bergthora  had  her  revenge,  and  sent  a  man  to 
kill  one  of  Hallgerda's  thralls.  When  Nyal  heard  of 
the  deed,  at  the  Thing,  he  took  a  purse  holding  twelve 
ounces  in  silver  and  handed  it  to  Gunnar.  Gunnar 
looked  at  the  money  and  saw  that  it  was  the  very 
same  that  he  had  paid  to  Nyal  the  year  before. 


ICELAND  ;        101 


And  so  the  blood  feud  went  on  between  the  .C 
women  until  six  men  had  been  killed,  three  on  either 
side.  The  blood  money  passed  back  and  forth  between 
Gunnar  and  Nyal.  But  they  remained  fast  friends, 
for  nothing  could  shake  their  friendship. 

Gunnar  was  troubled  over  the  death  of  the  thralls. 
"I  should  like  to  know,"  he  said  to  himself,  "whether 
I  am  less  brave  and  less  brisk  than  other  men  because 
I  think  more  of  the  killing  of  a  thrall  than  others  do  ?  " 

HALLGERDA  STEALS  CHEESE  AND  BUTTER 

In  the  next  winter,  which  was  very  cold,  there  came 
a  great  scarcity  of  food,  so  that  men  fell  short  of  both 
meat  and  hay,  and  the  scarcity  spread  over  all  parts  of 
Iceland.  Gunnar  shared  out  his  hay  and  meat  with 
many  men,  and  all  got  them  who  came  to  his  farm, 
so  long  as  his  stores  lasted.  Finally  it  came  about  that 
Gunnar  himself  fell  short  of  both  hay  and  meat. 

So  he  went  to  see  a  wealthy  man  named  Otkell,  and 
said  to  him,  "It  so  happens  that  I  am  come  to  deal 
with  you  for  hay  and  meat." 

Otkell  answered,  '"I  have  good  store  of  both,  but  I 
will  sell  you  neither." 

Gunnar  turned  away  without  saying  a  word,  and  in 
the  end  he  got  all  the  hay  and  meat  he  wanted  from 
Nyal.  But  Hallgerda  held  a  spite  against  Otkell  for 
his  rude  answer.  In  the  summer,  when  Gunnar  had 
ridden  off  to  the  Thing,  as  soon  as  his  back  was  turned, 
she  sent  one  of  her  thralls  to  OtkelPs  farm,  bidding 


1C2          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

'him 'steal  ".all  the  cheese  and  butter  he  could  lay  hands 
on,  and  then  set  fire  to  Otkell's  storehouse.  When 
Gunnar  and  his  friends  came  back  from  the  Thing, 
Hallgerda  set  food  on  the  table,  and  in  came  cheese 
and  butter.  Cheese  and  butter  were  thought  delicate 
food  in  Iceland  at  that  time,  and  Gunnar  knew  that 
such  delicate  food  was  not  to  be  looked  for  in  his  house. 
He  asked  Hallgerda  whence  it  came. 

"From  a  good  place,"  said  she.  'You  may  well  eat 
of  it.  Besides,  it  is  no  man's  business  to  trouble  him- 
self with  the  housekeeping." 

Gunnar  became  angry,  and  said,  "It  is  a  bad  thing 
if  I  am  a  partner  with  a  thief,"  and  with  that  he  gave 
her  a  slap  on  the  cheek. 

Hallgerda  said  she  would  bear  that  slap  in  mind 
and  repay  it  if  she  could. 

So  she  went  off  and  he  went  with  her,  and  then  the 
cheese  and  butter  that  were  on  the  table  were  cleared 
away,  and  flesh-meat  was  brought  in  instead.  All 
thought  it  was  because  the  flesh-meat  had  been  got 
in  a  better  way. 

By  and  by  one  of  Otkell's  men  told  him  there  was  no 
doubt  in  his  mind  but  that  Hallgerda  was  the  thief,  so 
Otkell  followed  out  this  plan.  He  told  some  women  to 
go  about  from  house  to  house  with  small  things  to  sell, 
and  give  them  to  the  housewives,  and  mark  what  was 
given  them  in  return. 

"For,"  said  he  to  himself,  "  'tis  the  turn  of  mind  of 
all  men  first  to  give  away  what  has  been  stolen,  if  they 
have  it  in  their  keeping;  and  so  it  will  be  here  also." 


ICELAND  103 

The  women  went  about  the  country,  and  they  were 
away  half  a  month.  When  they  came  back  they  had 
big  bundles.  They  said  Hallgerda  had  been  most 
generous  to  them. 

He  asked  what  she  had  given  them. 

"Cheese,"  said  they. 

He  begged  to  see  it,  and  they  showed  it  to  him.  It 
was  in  great  slices.  These  he  took  and  kept. 

Shortly  after  this,  Gunnar's  brother,  Kolskegg,  fell 
to  talking  with  Gunnar  and  said,  "I  hate  to  tell  you, 
but  the  story  is  in  every  man's  mouth  that  Hallgerda 
must  have  stolen,  and  that  she  was  at  the  bottom  of  all 
that  great  fire  at  Otkell's." 

Gunnar  said  that  he  too  thought  that  must  be  so. 
"But  what  is  to  be  done  now?" 

Kolskegg  answered,  "You  will  think  it  your  duty  to 
make  payment  for  your  wife's  wrong,  and  settle  this  mat- 
ter privately,  as  between  you  and  Otkell  alone.  You 
should  go  to  see  Otkell  and  make  him  a  handsome  offer." 

Accordingly  Gunnar  went  to  see  Otkell  and  made  him 
several  handsome  offers,  being  willing  to  pay  twice  the 
worth  of  what  was  lost,  but  Otkell  refused  them  all 
and  would  have  none  of  them  and  would  not  settle  the 
matter  in  a  friendly  way.  He  was  angry,  and  nothing 
would  satisfy  him  but  to  have  it  settled  openly  at  the 
All-Thing  in  front  of  all  the  neighbors.  He  wanted  to 
summon  Gunnar  according  to  the  law,  and  bring  a 
lawsuit  against  him. 

And  so  the  time  went  on  until  the  last  of  the  sum- 
moning days  before  the  All-Thing. 


104          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Otkell  and  his  men,  twelve  of  them,  rode  to  Gunnar's 
farm.  Gunnar  was  out-of-doors  and  knew  nothing  of 
their  coming  until  they  had  ridden  right  up  to  the 
house.  Otkell  did  not  go  in,  but  thundered  out  the  lawful 
summons  then  and  there.  He  said  he  accused  Gunnar's 
wife  of  stealing  his  cheese  and  butter,  and  of  setting 
fire  to  his  storehouse,  and  he  called  upon  Gunnar  to 
attend  the  All-Thing  and  make  lawful  payment.  His 
summons  was  all  correctly  worded  according  to  the  law. 

Now  Gunnar  was  angry  because  Otkell  had  refused 
to  settle  the  matter  in  a  friendly  way,  and  had  wished 
to  put  him  to  shame  before  all  the  neighbors.  He  made 
up  his  mind  not  to  give  any  money  payment  fixed  by 
Otkell,  but  to  stand  up  for  himself  and  fight  the  quarrel 
out  in  a  duel.  It  was  an  ancient  custom  in  Iceland 
that  a  man  might  always  challenge  his  enemy  to  fight 
a  duel  if  he  did  not  wish  to  make  a  money  payment  in 
a  lawsuit. 

So  when  Gunnar  arrived  at  the  All-Thing,  he  chal- 
lenged Otkell  to  fight  a  duel.  Otkell  knew  he  had  no 
chance  in  a  fight  against  Gunnar,  so  he  gave  in  at  once. 
Gunnar  fixed  the  payment  to  suit  himself,  and  lost 
nothing  by  the  lawsuit,  indeed  he  had  the  greatest 
honor  from  it;  but  Otkell  was  bitter,  and  felt  very 
angry  with  him. 

It  happened  the  next  spring  that  Otkell  was  riding 
in  the  direction  of  Gunnar's  farm,  and  his  horse  began 
to  gallop.  Now  Gunnar  was  in  his  seed  field,  sowing  his 
corn  there,  and  presently  he  laid  his  cloak  of  fine  stuff 
and  his  axe  down  by  his  side,  stooping  low  to  do  so. 


ICELAND  105 

Now  it  must  be  told  that  Otkell  was  riding  faster 
than  he  wanted  to  ride  because  his  horse  was  frisky. 
He  had  spurs  on  his  feet,  and  he  galloped  down  over 
the  ploughed  field,  and  neither  he  nor  Gunnar  saw  the 
other.  Just  as  Gunnar  stood  upright,  Otkell  rode  down 
upon  him  and  drove  one  of  his  spurs  into  Gunnar' s 
ear,  giving  him  a  great  gash  which  bled  at  once  freely. 
Then  Otkell's  companions  rode  up. 

"You  may  see,  all  of  you,"  said  Gunnar,  "that 
Otkell  has  drawn  my  blood,  and  it  is  unworthy  to  go 
on  so.  First  he  summoned  me,  and  now  he  treads  me 
under  foot  and  rides  over  me." 

Gunnar  went  home,  and  never  said  a  word  to  any- 
one about  what  had  happened,  and  no  one  thought 
that  this  wound  could  have  come  by  man's  doing.  But 
soon  after  this  Gunnar  and  Kolskegg  met  Otkell  and 
his  men,  eight  of  them  together,  in  a  lonely  place. 
Then  and  there  they  fought  out  their  quarrel,  until 
Otkell  and  all  his  men  were  killed,  Gunnar  and  Kolskegg 
being  unhurt. 

"I  should  like  to  know,"  said  Gunnar  again  to  him- 
self, as  he  rode  home,  "whether  I  am  less  brave  and 
less  brisk  than  other  men,  because  I  think  with  more 
regret  of  killing  men  than  they  do?" 

The  news  of  the  killing  was  spread  far  and  wide  and 
a  message  was  sent  to  the  nearest  relations  of  Otkell, 
who  were  called  Gizur  the  White  and  Geir  the  Priest. 
It  was  the  duty  of  these  men,  as  his  nearest  relations, 
to  revenge  Otkell;  for  they  had  the  blood  feud  after 
him,  as  the  saying  went. 


106 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


THE  SLAYING  OF  OTKELL 

A  little  later,  they  rode  up  to  the  spot  where  the 
fight  had  been,  dug  up  the  bodies,  and  took  witness  as 
to  the  number  of  the  wounds.  After  that  they  gave 
lawful  notice,  and  summoned  nine  neighbors  to  bear 
witness  in  the  suit. 

Then  they  rode  back  home.  The  news  that  the  law- 
suit was  set  on  foot  was  spread  all  over  the  country, 
and  the  saying  ran  that  the  Thing  would  be  very  noisy 
and  stormy. 

THE  LAWSUIT 

Now  all  the  people  came  to  the  Thing  and  fitted  up 
their  huts.  Men  went  up  to  the  Hill  of  Laws,  and  then 
Geir  the  Priest  stood  up  and  gave  notice  that  he  had  a 


ICELAND  107 

suit  of  manslaughter  against  Gunnar  for  the  killing 
of  Otkell.  Other  suits  were  brought  against  Gunnar 
and  Kolskegg  for  the  slaying  of  Otkell's  followers. 
After  that,  the  men  went  down  from  the  Hill  of  Laws, 
and  so  the  Thing  went  on  till  the  day  when  the  courts 
were  to  be  set  to  try  lawsuits.  Then  both  sides 
gathered  their  men  together  in  great  strength.  Geir 
the  Priest  and  Gizur  the  White  stood  looking  to  the 
north,  while  Gunnar  and  Nyal  stood  looking  toward 
the  south. 

Geir  the  Priest  told  Gunnar  to  listen  to  his  oath, 
and  then  he  took  the  oath  and  afterwards  declared 
his  suit.  After  this  the  nine  neighbors  who  had  borne 
witness  to  the  number  of  wounds  on  the  dead  bodies 
told  exactly  what  they  had  seen.  These  nine  neigh- 
bors were  called  the  inquest.  Questions  were  asked 
on  both  sides.  In  the  end  a  priest  who  was  one 
of  the  wisest  of  lawyers  said,  "It  seems  as  though 
the  most  satisfactory  way  of  ending  the  suit  would 
be  a  peaceful  settlement  by  the  payment  of  blood 
money/' 

So  it  was  decided,  by  the  counsel  of  the  wisest  men, 
that  all  the  suits  should  be  decided  by  a  jury;  that  is, 
twelve  men  were  to  make  a  judgment  on  the  matter. 
The  men  were  soon  chosen,  and  their  judgment  was 
uttered  then  and  there  at  the  Thing. 

The  judgment  was  that  the  blood  money  for  Otkell's 
death  was  to  be  set  off  against  the  hurt  Gunnar  got 
from  the  spur,  and  as  for  the  rest  of  the  manslaughters, 
they  were  to  be  paid  for  after  the  worth  of  the  men. 


THE  THING 


ICELAND  109 

Gunnar's  relations  contributed  money  so  that  all  the 
fines  might  be  paid  up  at  once. 

Gunnar  rode  home  from  the  Thing,  and  thanked  the 
men  for  their  help,  and  gave  gifts  to  many.  He  got  the 
greatest  honor  from  the  suit.  After  this  he  stayed  at 
home. 

THE  DEATH  OF  GUNNAR 

Otkell's  relations  could  not  stand  this  settlement  of 
the  matter,  so  they  thought  out  a  plan  and  laid  it  deep. 
Gunnar  was  too  strong  a  fighter  for  them  to  meet  in 
the  open,  so  they  plotted  a  secret  murder.  One  night 
when  Gunnar  was  sleeping  in  his  bed,  they  came  in  a 
large  company  to  kill  him  secretly — Geir  the  Priest, 
Gizur  the  White,  and  many  others. 

Gunnar's  house  was  made  all  of  wood,  and  roofed 
with  big  logs  cut  into  shape,  and  there  were  window 
openings  under  the  logs  that  carried  the  roof,  and 
the  windows  were  fitted  with  shutters.  Gunnar  slept 
in  a  loft  above  the  hall,  and  so  did  his  mother  and 
Hallgerda. 

Now  when  the  murderers  came  near  the  house,  they 
knew  not  whether  Gunnar  was  at  home,  so  they  sent 
one  man  ahead  to  find  out.  This  man  crept  forward 
and  began  to  climb  up  on  the  house.  Gunnar  awoke 
and  saw  a  red  cloak  passing  across  the  window  open- 
ing. He  quickly  thrust  out  his  bill  and  hit  the  man 
in  the  middle.  The  bill  was  a  weapon  much  used  in 
those  days,  a  sort  of  hook-shaped  blade  at  the  end 
of  a  long  stick.  The  man's  feet  slipped  from  under 


110          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

him,  and  he  dropped  his  shield.  Down  he  toppled 
from  the  roof. 

Then  the  others  made  for  the  outhouses.  Gunnar 
shot  arrows  at  them  and  made  a  stout  defense,  and 
they  could  get  nothing  done. 

Some  ropes  lay  on  the  ground  which  were  often 
used  to  strengthen  the  roof.  Geir  the  Priest  said, 
"Let  us  take  these  ropes  and  throw  one  end  over  the 
logs  that  support  the  roof,  and  let  us  fasten  the  other 
end  to  these  rocks  and  twist  them  tight,  and  so  pull 
the  whole  roof  off  the  hall." 

So  they  took  the  ropes  and  all  lent  a  hand  to  carry 
this  out,  and  before  Gunnar  was  aware  of  it,  they  had 
pulled  the  whole  roof  off  the  hall. 

Just  then  one  of  the  men  sprang  up  on  the  open  wall 
and  cut  in  two  Gunnar's  bowstring.  Gunnar  clutched 
his  bill  with  both  hands,  and  turning  on  the  man  quick- 
ly, drove  it  through  him  and  hurled  him  down  to  the 
ground.  Then  up  sprang  another  man.  Gunnar  thrust 
at  him  with  his  bill  and  he  threw  his  shield  before 
the  blow,  but  the  bill  passed  clean  through  the  shield, 
and  broke  both  the  man's  arms.  Down  he  fell  from 
the  wall. 

Thus  Gunnar  wounded  eight  more  men  and  killed 
two.  By  that  time  he  himself  had  received  two  wounds, 
and  all  men  said  he  never  once  winced  either  at  wounds 
or  death.  Then  he  said  to  Hallgerda,  "Woman,  cut 
me  two  locks  of  your  long  hair;  and  you  two,  my 
mother  and  you,  twist  them  together  into  a  bowstring 
for  me." 


ICELAND 


111 


"Does  anything  depend  on  it?"  Hallgerda  asked. 

"My  life  depends  on  it,"  he  said,  "for  they  will 
never  come  to  close  quarters  with  me  if  I  can  keep 
them  off  with  my  bow." 

"Well,"  said  she,  "I'll  not  do  it— now  I  will  recall 
to  your  mind  that  slap  on  the  face  which  you  gave  me, 


THE  FIGHT  AROUND  GUNNAR'S  HOUSE 

and  I  don't  care  a  whit  whether  you  hold  out  a  long 
while  or  a  short." 

"Everyone  has  something  to  boast  of,"  said  Gunnar, 
"and  I  will  not  ask  you  twice  for  a  favor." 

Gunnar  made  a  stout  and  bold  defense,  and  now 
wounded  eight  other  men  with  such  sore  wounds  that 
many  of  them  lay  at  death's  door.  Gunnar  kept  them 
all  off  until  at  last  he  fell,  worn  out  with  toil.  They 
wounded  him  with  great  and  many  wounds,  and  he 
held  his  own  against  them  a  little  while  longer,  but  in 
the  end  it  came  about  that  they  killed  him. 


112          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Then  Gizur  spoke  and  said,  "We  have  laid  to  earth 
a  mighty  chief,  and  hard  work  has  it  been.  The  fame 
of  this  defense  of  his  shall  last  as  long  as  men  live  in 
this  land." 

Gunnar's  death  was  a  great  grief  to  many  a  man,  and 
it  was  very  hard  for  Nyal  to  bear. 

The  story  is  ended.  The  old  Icelander  leaves  his  chair 
to  bank  the  fire  for  the  night.  The  little  fair-haired  boy 
nods,  already  half  asleep. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  In  this  story  we  return  to  a  state  of 
half-barbarism,  a  turning  point  in  the  early  history  of  a  great 
western  race  when  the  rule  of  law  and  justice  is  beginning  to 
replace  the  rule  of  might  and  bloodshed  in  the  settlement  of 
personal  quarrels.  Mention  happenings  in  the  story  that  show 
the  truth  of  the  various  parts  of  this  statement. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Describe  a  meeting  of  the  Thing. 

2.  In  what  ways  did  the  democracy  of  Iceland  resemble  that 
of  Athens.  » 

3.  Which  were  the  classes  of  people  that  were  not  allowed  to 
take  part  in  the  government  of  Iceland  ? 

4.  What  was  a  blood  feud? 

5.  Does  the  payment  of  blood  money  for  a  murder  remind 
you  of  any  other  barbaric  custom  described  earlier  in  this  book? 

6.  How  much  blood  money  was  asked  for  the  life  of  a  thrall  ? 
How  much  for  the  life  of  a  freeman? 

7.  How  were  thralls  treated  in  Iceland? 

8.  What  was  the  position  of  women  in  Iceland  as  compared 
with  that  of  Greek  women?   As  compared  with  that  of  American 
women  to-day? 


ICELAND  113 

9.  At  the  All-Thing,  Gunnar  offers  to  settle  his  legal  quarrel 
with  Otkell  by  fighting  a  duel.  Should  we  to-day  consider  that  a 
just  method  of  settling  a  personal  dispute?  Why? 

10.  Do  you  consider  that  the  old  custom  of  duelling  is  any 
worse  than  the  modern  custom  of  settling  disputes  between  nations 
by  warfare  ?    Give  reasons  for  your  opinion. 

11.  Of  the  Icelandic  customs  described  in  this  story,  which 
were  the  most  cruel  and  barbaric?  On  the  other  hand,  which  were 
the  most  progressive,  tending  toward  future  civilization  and  order  ? 

12.  Do  you  think  that  democracy,  or  self-government,  had  any 
effect  on  the  character  of  the  freemen  of  Iceland?   What  qualities 
of  character  were  shown  by  Gunnar  and  Nyal? 


CHAPTER  VI 

ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES 

1.  RICHARD  CCEUR  DE  LION 

2.  LEOFRIC  AND  GODIVA 

3.  ROBIN  HOOD  AND  THE  BUTCHERS'  GILD 

4.  THE  SHIRE  MEETING 

Now  we  fare  southward  from  Iceland  and  cross  the 
northern  seas  to  England  in  the  British  Isles. 

Rain  clouds,  fogs,  and  chilly  droughts  wrap  them- 
selves around  this  little  island,  clinging  to  it  as  though 
they  were  unwilling  to  leave  it.  But  a  warm  breeze  blows 
up  from  the  south.  The  clouds  part  for  a  moment  and  a 
patch  of  blue  sky  appears.  In  the  watery  sunlight  we  see 
green  woods  and  rich  grassy  slopes  washed  in  the 
recent  rain,  and  fields  of  wet  spring  flowers,  refreshing 
to  our  eyes. 

The  people  of  this  island  are  to  spread  around  the 
whole  earth,  and  become  the  rulers  of  one  of  the  great 
empires  of  history.  North  America  will  be  settled  by 
them  as  a  colony,  and  thus  English  men  and  women 
will  be  among  the  first  founders  of  our  country.  But 
before  we  come  to  the  story  of  the  Settlement  of  Virginia, 
and  the  story  of  the  Pilgrims  who  leave  England  in  the 
Mayflower  in  1620,  we  wish  to  see  the  mother  country 
as  it  was  in  the  Middle  Ages. 

Our  thoughts  pass  over  many  centuries. 

114 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      115 

The  half-savage  early  Britons  are  first  conquered 
by  the  Romans,  and  later  Britain  is  invaded  by  many 
tribes  of  Northerners,  whose  customs,  are  like  those  of 
the  Icelanders. 

All  over  Europe  during  the  Dark  Ages,  power  and 
authority  are  falling  into  the  hands  of  rough  leaders  who 
are  skilled  in  warfare  and  able  to  surround  themselves 
with  bands  of  strong  fighters  looking  for  adventure. 
These  leaders  are  given  various  titles  which  become 
hereditary,  that  is  to  say,  they  are  handed  down  from 
father  to  son.  The  highest  title  is  that  of  emperor,  or 
king,  and  below  the  king  come  the  nobles — the  dukes,  the 
earls,  and  the  barons. 

In  1066,  England  is  conquered  by  a  great  fighter  called 
William  the  Norman  (or  Northerner),  Duke  of  Normandy, 
who  'makes  himself  king  of  England  and  gives  large 
estates  of  land  to  his  Norman  followers — dukes,  earls, 
and  barons. 

Rich  from  conquest  and  plunder,  the  fighting  earls  and 
barons  build  strong  castles  in  which  they  can  defend 
themselves  in  their  private  wars.  In  the  neighborhood  of 
these  strong  castles  live  poor  country  folk  in  villages  of 
miserable  little  huts,  made  of  wood  and  straw.  The  com- 
mon people  are  weak  and  defenseless  in  this  age  of  con- 
fusion and  fighting,  and  they  are  obliged  to  seek  the 
protection  of  the  nobles. 

In  return  for  his  protection  a  nobleman  forces  the 
country  j oik  to  become  his  "tenants";  he  makes  them  work 
in  his  fields  under  the  oversight  of  a  "bailiff" ;  and  he 
makes  them  pay  tribute.  The  poorest  countrymen  are 


116          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

called  "serfs"  and  the  serfs  are  little  better  off  than 
slaves  or  thralls,  because  they  are  not  free  to  leave  their 
master's  service. 

As  hundreds  of  years  pass,  some  of  the  larger  villages, 
or  towns,  become  rich  centers  of  trade,  and  the  citizens 
manage  to  shake  off  their  duties  to  the  noblemen,  owing 
duty  to  the  king  only,  which  they  pay  in  the  form  of  money 
taxes.  The  citizens  are  allowed  to  govern  their  own  cities, 
and  they  come  to  be  much  more  independent  than  the 
country  folk. 

The  king  is  the  chief  ruler  of  England,  but  he  does  not 
have  absolute  power,  like  the  Roman  Emperor.  The 
power  of  government  is  shared  by  a  group  of  men  called 
the  "Parliament"  The  men  meeting  in  this  Parliament, 
and  not  the  king,  decide  how  much  money  shall  be  raised 
by  taxes.  At  first,  only  bishops  and  noblemen  sit  in  Parlia- 
ment, but  later  it  is  attended  by  knights  and  townsfolk 
from  every  county  (or  shire),  and  from  every  city  in 
England.  These  knights  and  townsfolk  are  true  represent- 
atives of  the  people,  and  it  is  their  duty  to  stand  up  for 
the  rights  of  the  people  in  Parliament.  They  are  elected 
by  the  vote  of  the  people  of  every  shire  and  town  at  meetings 
called  "shire  meetings."  Their  election  marks  the  begin- 
ning of  what  is  known  as  representative  government  in 
England,  that  is,  government  by  elected  representatives, 
such  as  we  have  in  the  United  States. 

The  story  of  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion  and  that  of  Leofric 
and  Godiva  are  both  based  on  old  English  histories  written 
in  the  early  Middle  Ages.  The  story  of  Robin  Hood  and 
the  Butchers'  Gild,  probably  fanciful,  is  based  on  an 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      117 

old  English  tale.  As  to  "  The  Shire  Meeting"  no  exact 
description  of  an  early  shire  meeting  written  by  an  eye- 
witness has  come  down  to  us,  so  this  account  merely 
describes  what  historians  believe  to  have  been  the  condi- 
tions of  an  election. 

RICHARD  CCEUR  DE  LION 

King  Richard  Coeur  de  Lion,  or  Richard  the  Lion- 
hearted,  was  a  brave  king  and  the  very  flower  of 
knighthood.  He  was  tall,  his  hair  was  between  red 
and  gold,  his  legs  were  straight  and  graceful,  and 
his  arms  were  long.  He  was  very  skillful  in  the  use 
of  a  sword. 

From  boyhood  up,  fighting  had  been  his  favorite 
pastime.  In  games  and  tournaments  of  knights,  he 
did  marvellous  deeds  of  arms,  and  so,  when  he  came 
to  the  throne,  his  first  thought  was  not  of  the  duties  of 
kingship,  but  of  warfare. 

Soon  after  he  was  crowned  king,  Richard  summoned 
a  meeting  of  Parliament.  Parliament  was  held  in  the 
King's  Great  Hall  at  Westminster.  King  Richard 
himself,  wearing  his  crown,  sat  on  a  richly  decorated 
throne,  on  a  platform  at  one  end  of  the  hall.  His  fa- 
vorite barons  and  bishops  sat  on  benches  close  to  the 
King,  while  the  lesser  barons  and  bishops  filled  the 
body  of  the  hall.  The  meeting  was  opened  with  a 
flourish  of  trumpets.1 

1  This  description  is  based  on  an  account  of  a  meeting  of  the  Common 
Council  which  actually  took  place,  though  a  few  years  later. 


A  MEETING  OF  PARLIAMENT 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      119 

The  King's  Chancellor,  or  chief  adviser,  rose  up  and 
said  to  the  barons: 

"My  Lord  the  King  wishes  you  to  know  that  he  is 
in  need  of  money.  He  plans  to  raise  a  great  army,  and 
build  many  ships,  and  he  asks  you  earnestly  to  help 
him  in  this  matter  by  filling  the  treasury  with  gold." 

To  this  request,  the  barons  listened  with  their  usual 
indignation.  A  murmur  mingled  with  groans  and  grief 
sounded  through  the  hall,  and  several  of  the  more 
miserly  barons  were  heard  to  complain  that  money 
was  always  being  dragged  out  of  them  without  their 
getting  the  slightest  profit  from  it,  just  as  if  they  had 
been  slaves  of  the  lowest  class. 

King  Richard,  seeing  that  his  request  had  not  been 
well  received,  now  rose  up  and  made  an  eloquent 
speech. 

"The  City  of  the  Cross,"  he  said,  "the  Holy  City 
of  Jerusalem,  is  in  the  hands  of  the  heathen  Turks. 
Together  with  the  King  of  France,  I  have  taken  the 
vow  of  the  Cross,  and  I  am  burning  with  desire  to  run, 
yea,  to  fly  to  the  Holy  Land,  to  avenge  the  wrongs  of 
Christ.  It  is  for  no  selfish  war,  but  for  a  holy  Crusade 
that  I  am  needing  men-at-arms,  ships,  and  gold." 

With  such  words  and  many  others,  King  Richard 
won  over  the  hearts  of  his  barons,  and  in  the  end,  after 
some  complaint,  they  decided  to  give  him  a  large  sum 
of  money  and  goods,  and  also  provide  men  for  an  army. 

When  King  Richard  had  collected  from  his  sub- 
jects a  great  multitude  of  soldiers,  and  a  large  sum  of 
money,  he  sailed  away  to  the  Holy  Land,  leaving  his 


120          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

kingdom  in  the  hands  of  his  Chancellor,  who  was  his 
chief  minister. 

The  black  wooden  ships  of  the  English,  which  carried 
the  King  and  his  armies,  flew  like  crows  over  the  curl- 
ing waves,  and  at  last  put  in  at  the  island  of  Cyprus, 
where  King  Richard  celebrated  his  marriage  with  a  fair 
lady  named  Berengaria.  For  a  long  time  he  had  been 
charmed  with  the  beauty  and  graces  of  this  princess. 
Her  father,  the  King  of  Navarre,  was  willing  to  give 
her  over  to  King  Richard's  care,  and  accordingly 
sent  Berengaria  across  the  sea  to  accompany  him 
upon  his  crusade. 

King  Richard,  it  was  said,  was  glorious  upon  this 
happy  occasion  of  his  marriage,  and  cheerful  to  all. 
He  was  magnificent  to  look  at,  and  worthy  of  his 
beautiful  lady.  Upon  his  head  was  a  crown  of  gold, 
his  feet  were  decorated  with  golden  spurs,  and  he  was 
clothed  in  a  tunic  of  rose-colored  stuff,  ornamented 
with  crescent  moons  of  solid  silver.  He  wore  a  cloak 
of  white  velvet,  and  around  his  shoulders  was  a  cape 
of  figured  silk.  It  was  always  his  habit  to  be  richly 
dressed,  because  he  felt  that  the  appearance  of  a 
king  should  be  equal  to  his  fame  for  glory,  might, 
and  authority. 

The  marriage  was  celebrated  in  a  great  castle  built  on 
a  rocky  hill.  The  castle  seemed  to  grow  out  of  the  hill, 
being  like  a  rock  itself.  It  was  a  great  fortress  of  stone, 
with  high  towers  and  thick  walls. 

When  the  marriage  guests  came  into  the  huge,  dark 
hall  of  the  castle,  which  was  lighted  with  rushlights, 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      121 

each  one  was  placed  according  to  his  rank.  Who  could 
count  the  number  of  dishes  that  were  brought  in,  or  the 
different  kinds  of  cups,  or  the  crowds  of  servants  in 
splendid  garments?  At  the  end  of  the  feast,  King 
Richard  gave  to  each  one  of  the  nobles  present,  accord- 
ing to  his  rank,  a  beautiful  gold  or  silver  cup,  adorned 
with  precious  stones.  Richard  was  generous  with  his 
wealth,  and  he  thought  that  the  day  was  lost  on  which 
he  gave  nothing  away. 

Then  he  called  for  minstrels  and  musicians,  for  he 
was  himself  a  poet  and  a  musician,  and  the  musi- 
cians made  great  music,  and  with  them  came  the 
tumblers  and  the  jugglers  and  the  dancers,  until  the 
whole  castle  was  filled  with  the  din  and  noise  of 
merrymaking. 

On  the  day  following  their  marriage,  King  Richard 
and  his  lady,  together  with  their  great  armies  of 
knights  and  soldiers,  sailed  away  from  Cyprus  to  the 
Holy  Land.  The  city  of  Acre,  in  the  Holy  Land,  was 
held  by  the  Turks,  and  was  already  being  besieged  by 
the  King  of  France. 

On  the  high  seas,  the  English  met  with  a  big  ship 
manned  by  the  Turks,  which,  so  they  said,  was  bigger 
than  any  other  ship  ever  described,  with  the  exception 
of  Noah's  Ark.  They  attacked  this  ship  and  sank  it. 
Then  King  Richard  and  his  men  landed  at  Acre  and 
pitched  their  tents  under  the  walls  of  that  city.  How 
splendidly  they  were  prepared  for  battle!  They  had 
on  costly  armor  and  many-colored  garments,  and  they 
rode  on  great  war  horses  and  beautiful  mules.  They 


122 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


marched  to  and  fro  ready  for  battle,  with  flags  and 
gorgeous  banners  floating  in  the  breeze. 

Queen  Berengaria  now  had  to  separate  from  King 
Richard,  and  return  home,  because  the  camp  of 
the  Crusaders  under  the  walls  of  Acre  lay  open  to 
many  dangers. 

The  first  task  of  the  English  was  the  building  of  war 
machines,  for  the  tearing  down  of  the  high  walls  of  the 

city.  Of  these  machines, 
the  most  remarkable 
were  the  cats  and  the 
stone-throwers.  The  cats 
were  a  kind  of  ladder, 
used  for  scaling  the 
walls,  and  the  stone- 
throwers  were  huge  ma- 
chines which  pounded 
the  city  day  and  night 
with  large  stones.  The 
King  of  France  had  a 
stone-thrower  which  he 
called  Bad  Neighbor, 
and  there  was  another 
called  Bad  Kinsman.  It 
was  said  that  a  stone  from  Bad  Neighbor,  falling  within 
the  city  walls,  would  kill  twelve  Turks  at  a  blow.  The 
chief  weapon  of  the  Turks,  on  the  other  hand,  apart 
from  their  arrows,  was  a  kind  of  burning  oil,  called 
Greek  fire,  which  they  poured  down  in  flaming  streams 
upon  the  Crusaders. 


A  CRUSADER 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      123 

After  a  long  struggle,  the  Crusaders  battered  down 
the  walls  of  Acre,  and  the  keys  of  the  city  were  given 
over  to  them.  But  now  came  an  unexpected  mis- 
fortune. With  Jerusalem  still  in  the  hands  of  the 
Turks,  and  his  crusade  only  begun,  the  King  of  France 
broke  his  vow!  Amid  the  wonder,  the  disapproval, 
and  the  disgust  of  all  the  English,  he  suddenly  left 
Acre  and  returned  to  his  own  country.  A  great  num- 
ber of  the  French  soldiers  went  back  with  him,  and 
King  Richard  and  his  men  were  left  to  carry  on  the 
crusade  alone. 

Leaving  Acre,  the  English  marched  through  the 
plains  of  the  Holy  Land,  and  engaged  in  many  battles 
with  the  armies  of  the  Turks  led  by  Saladin.  Saladin 
was  a  great  warrior  and  a  noble  enemy,  worthy  of 
Richard  himself.  Richard  fought  in  the  hottest  and 
thickest  part  of  the  battles,  and  he  could  always  open 
out  a  wide  pathway  for  himself,  cutting  down  Turks 
right  and  left  with  his  sword  like  lightning. 

But  ill  luck  was  in  store  for  the  English.  Before  they 
came  near  Jerusalem,  winter  set  in  with  its  floods  of 
rain,  and  the  soldiers  had  to  toil  through  deep  mud,  un- 
til their  once  shining  armor  had  become  dull  and  rusty. 
It  is  no  wonder  that  they  felt  sad  and  disheartened. 
In  order  to  encourage  them,  King  Richard,  every  night 
before  he  lay  down  to  rest,  sent  a  messenger  round 
the  camp  crying  in  a  loud  voice,  "Help!  Help!  for 
the  Holy  Sepulchre!"  The  soldiers  took  up  the  cry 
and  repeated  the  words,  stretching  out  their  hands  in 
prayer  to  heaven.  Nevertheless,  good  luck  was  not 


124          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

granted  them.  They  were  attacked  with  sickness  and 
famine  and  despair. 

King  Richard  himself  fell  ill  of  a  high  fever.  Saladin, 
his  generous  enemy,  heard  of  his  sickness  and  sent  him 
snow  from  the  mountain  tops  and  fresh  fruits.  Then 
Richard,  not  to  be  outdone  in  kindness  and  generosity, 
sent  for  Saladin's  nephew,  and  with  his  own  hands 
honored  this  young  Turk  with  the  belt  of  knighthood. 
In  the  end  a  peace  was  made,  and  the  Christians  under 
the  protection  of  Saladin  were  allowed  to  visit  the 
Holy  Sepulchre  in  Jerusalem.  But  the  Holy  City  still 
remained  in  the  hands  of  the  Turks. 

Such  was  the  end  of  the  Crusade  that  had  been 
undertaken  so  gloriously  and  in  such  high  hope. 

Many  of  the  English  had  fallen  in  battle,  and  many 
had  died  from  famine  and  sickness.  With  the  small 
force  that  was  left  him,  King  Richard  boarded  a  ship 
and  started  homewards.  But  he  was  shipwrecked  in 
the  Adriatic  Sea,  and  had  to  travel  home  alone  by 
land,  under  a  false  name.  On  his  way  through  Ger- 
many he  was  recognized,  and  the  Emperor  of  Germany 
treacherously  took  him  prisoner,  and  locked  him  up 
in  the  dungeon  of  a  big  castle.  The  Emperor  of 
Germany  knew  that  he  could  demand  a  large  sum 
of  money  from  the  people  of  England  as  a  ransom  for 
their  king. 

For  a  long  time  the  English  did  not  know  what  had 
become  of  Richard.  It  is  said  that  he  was  at  last 
rescued  by  his  favorite  minstrel,  a  boy  named  Blondel. 
Blondel  wandered  through  many  countries  singing  a 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      125 

song  that  Richard  had  taught  him,  and  finally  he 
traveled  through  Germany,  visiting  many  of  the 
gloomy  prison  castles  and  fortresses  of  that  country. 
One  day  it  chanced  that  he  came  to  the  castle  where 
Richard  was  imprisoned,  and  he  heard  his  song  echoed 
from  the  depths  of  a  dungeon.  Whereupon  he  cried 
out  in  joy,  "O  Richard,  O  my  King!" 

Soon  after  this,  a  great  sum  of  gold  to  pay  the 
ransom  was  collected  from  Richard's  subjects  in 
England,  so  that  the  King  might  return  in  happiness 
to  his  own  people  and  his  own  country. 

LEOFRIC  AND  GODIVA 

Once  upon  a  time  there  was  an  earl  of  Chester  called 
Leofric,  who  lived  with  his  wife,  the  noble  countess 
Godiva,  near  the  town  of  Coventry  in  England. 

This  earl  was  a  great  warrior,  broad  of  chest,  bold 
as  a  lion,  fierce  as  a  leopard,  and  quick  to  turn  red 
with  anger. 

His  wife,  the  Lady  Godiva,  was  a  gracious  lady,  and 
a  great  lover  of  the  Virgin  Mary.  She  was  very  good 
and  kind,  and  she  did  great  deeds  of  charity,  but  she 
had  one  fault,  and  that  was  that  she  talked  too  much. 

Now  this  lord  and  lady  of  Chester  lived  in  a  manor 
house,  around  which  was  dug  a  deep  moat.  Beyond  the 
moat  were  the  fairest  meadowlands  in  the  world,  be- 
longing to  the  earl.  Beyond  the  meadowlands  lay  the 
little  village,  the  ploughed  strips  and  the  common 
pastures  of  the  country  folk  of  Chester,  and  beyond 


126          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

these  was  a  fair  forest  in  which  the  deer  passed  in 
great  herds. 

The  Earl  Leofric  left  all  the  oversight  of  his  manor 
to  his  bailiff,  and  passed  his  time  with  his  men-at- 
arms,  a-hunting  deer  and  rabbits  and  wild  swine,  which 
they  would  bring  back  to  the  manor  and  joyfully  feast 
upon  together. 

The  Lady  Godiva,  for  her  part,  sat  at  home  working 
with  her  needle  and  making  robes  and  rich  tapestries. 
One  of  her  fairest  robes,  which  she  wore  on  Easter 
Sunday  and  other  feast  days,  was  skillfully  embroidered 
all  over  with  little  stars,  in  different  colors,  blue, 
red,  and  green,  and  it  was  studded  with  jewels  that 
flashed  more  brightly  than  burning  candles. 

But  it  was  not  only  upon  her  own  robes  that  the 
Lady  Godiva  spent  her  riches.  She  was  known  far 
and  wide  for  her  great  deeds  of  charity.  Above  all 
things  it  was  her  fond  desire  to  build  a  monastery. 

At  first,  when  she  pleaded  with  her  husband  to  build 
a  monastery,  he  would  not  hear  of  such  a  thing;  but 
she,  with  a  woman's  persistence  and  untiring  tongue, 
talked  and  talked  and  talked  and  talked  of  the  mon- 
astery until  at  last  he  gave  in.  A  monastery  was  built 
in  Coventry  big  enough  to  house  a  prior  and  four  and 
twenty  monks.  The  earl  gave  lands  and  goods  to  the 
monastery,  so  that  the  prior  became  as  rich  and 
powerful  as  any  lord.  The  town  was  divided  into 
two  halves,  the  EarPs  half  and  the  Prior's  half,  and  the 
men  of  Coventry  were  called  Earl's  men  or  Prior's 
men,  according  as  to  where  they  lived. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      127 

To  complete  their  pious  deed,  Earl  Leofric  and  his 
lady  also  built  a  church  in  Coventry,  which  was  one 
of  the  glories  of  the  age,  and  too  narrow  to  hold  all 
the  treasures  within  its  walls.  The  Lady  Godiva  paid 
down  one  hundred  talents  of  silver  and  one  talent  of 
gold  for  a  famous  relic,  the  arm  of  Saint  Augustine; 
moreover,  she  gave  a  necklace  of  jewels  to  hang  around 
the  neck  of  an  image  of  the  Virgin  Mary. 

Now,  one  morning  in  the  gay  month  of  May,  it  so 
happened  that  the  Lady  Godiva  was  walking  through 
the  meadows  of  the  manor,  listening  to  the  song  of 
the  lark  over  the  cornfields.  Around  the  manor  house 
there  were  pleasant  gardens  and  cornfields,  green 
meadows  shaded  with  oak  trees,  and  orchards  shower- 
ing their  white  blossoms  on  the  grass.  The  Lady 
Godiva  walked  on  and  on,  beyond  the  earl's  land, 
and  beyond  the  ploughed  strips,  until  she  came  to 
the  green  pasture  land  of  the  country  folk  which 
was  called  the  Common.  Here  she  saw  little  white 
lambs  feeding  on  the  soft  young  grass,  and  a  herd 
of  sleepy  red  and  white  cows  guarded  by  the  village 
cowherd. 

The  Lady  Godiva  looked  around  her,  and  all  seemed 
pleasant  in  the  sunshine.  But  suddenly  her  ears  caught 
a  dreadful  sound  of  groans  and  sobs,  and  turning 
around,  she  saw,  at  a  short  distance,  a  poor  serf  seated 
on  a  bank  under  a  white  hawthorn  hedge.  This  poor 
serf  was  one  of  the  earl's  shepherds  and  was  known 
in  the  village  as  "Simple  Tim."  He  had  laid  down 
his  stick  and  was  crying  and  sobbing  and  blubbering 


BUILDING  A  CHURCH 

1.  The  architect;    2.  Builders  at  work;    3.  The  prior;   4.  Offering 
up  of  the  foundation  charter;    5.  The  relics. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      129 

aloud  like  a  big  child.  He  was  homely  to  look  at,  with 
a  great  red  face  and  a  shock  of  red  hair,  and  his  clothes 
all  made  of  leather. 

When  the  Lady  Godiva  spoke  and  asked  this  poor 
boy  what  troubled  him,  he  blurted  out  his  sorrow 
between  great  sobs  and  sniffs:  "O  gracious  lady,  a 
terrible  misfortune  has  come  upon  me!  I  have  lost 
one  of  the  earl's  rams  in  the  forest — Joseph,  the  best 
ram  in  the  herd.  O-o-o-oh!  For  this,  Simon  the  bailiff 
will  drag  me  up  before  my  lord  at  the  Manorial  Court 
and  have  me  thrown  into  the  dungeon.  O-o-o-oh! 
And  I  have  a  poor  mother,  whose  back  is  bent  crooked 
with  age  and  hard  toil.  When  I  am  in  the  dungeon 
what  will  become  of  her?  Boo-hoo!  A  few  poor 
cocks  and  hens,  three  geese,  and  an  old  milk  cow  named 
Marion,  these  are  all  that  she  has  left.  (Sniff.)  At 
Easter  time  we  had  to  give  up  a  goose,  as  payment 
to  my  lord;  that  was  a  sad  business.  (Sniff.)  Simon 
the  bailiff  makes  life  very  hard  for  us  serfs,  and  I 
have  to  work  more  than  half  of  my  time  guarding 
the  earl's  sheep.  And  then,  even  if  I  should  have 
the  good  luck  to  find  Joseph,  there's  more  trouble 
lying  in  store  for  all  us  poor  country  folk.  O-o-oh! 
Boo-hoo!"  The  big  boy  burst  out  again  into  sobs  and 
groans,  and  the  Lady  Godiva,  famous  throughout  the 
'countryside  for  her  kind  heart  and  charity,  prayed  him 
and  begged  him  to  unburden  all  his  sorrows  to  her.  So 
he  spoke  on: 

"Simon  the  Cursed,  that  is  the  name  we  have  for  the 
lord's  bailiff,  for  the  reason  that  he  scrapes  us  down  to 


OLD  ENGLISH  SCENES 

May:  Watching  sheep.  July:  Haymaking 

June:    Cutting  wood.  August:  Harvesting. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      131 

the  last  penny.  The  tenants  and  serfs  of  the  manor 
are  all  against  him,  likewise  the  townsfolk  of  Coventry. 
We  can  no  longer  call  our  common  land  our  own, 
because  of  his  dishonesty  and  meanness.  He  tells  me 
to  let  the  lord's  sheep  browse  on  our  common  pasture 
land,  and  he  tells  the  ploughman  to  drive  the  lord's 
plough  into  the  strips  of  ploughed  land  that  we  have 
for  our  own  use.  The  strips  that  fell  to  my  lot  this 
year  were  so  narrow  that  I  could  hardly  turn  my 
plough  around.  We  poor  country  folk  chose  a  good 
sturdy  reeve  to  stand  up  for  our  rights,  and  the  village 
reeve  is  a  stout  man  who  always  carries  our  complaints 
and  grievances  to  the  bailiff,  but  it  is  no  use,  Simon  the 
Cursed  has  a  heart  of  stone.  And  now  comes  the  last 
bit  of  news,  that  we  must  pay  a  tax  to  the  earl  when  we 
put  up  our  goods  for  sale  in  Coventry  market!  Take 
my  word  for  it,  this  is  the  last  straw  that  will  break 
the  camel's  back." 

The  Lady  Godiva  knew  very  well  that  the  folk  of 
Coventry  had  their  ancient  rights  to  uphold,  so  she 
went  at  once  to  the  reeve,  and  heard  his  complaints; 
then  she  went  to  her  husband  and  said,  "Hearken, 
my  lord,  and  listen  carefully  to  what  I  have  to  tell 
you,"  and  she  repeated  over  and  over  again  every 
word  that  the  serf  and  the  reeve  had  spoken. 

But  the  Earl  Leofric  swore  loudly  and  answered 
rudely  that  nothing  would  induce  him  to  meddle 
with  the  oversight  of  his  manor.  He  said  that  he  left 
all  his  business  to  Simon  the  bailiff.  And  he  said  also 
that  Simon  the  bailiff  was  a  faithful,  excellent  bailiff, 


132          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

and  had  it  not  been  for  Simon's  care  and  forethought, 
he,  the  earl,  would  never  have  found  the  riches  for 
building  the  church  in  Coventry. 

But  the  Lady  Godiva  did  not  rest  content  with  this 
answer.  She  begged  and  prayed  her  lord  again  and 
again  to  free  the  town  of  Coventry  of  its  tax.  He 
answered  sharply  with  bad  language  and  bitter  words, 
and  told  her  not  to  ask  so  foolishly  for  what  was  so 
much  to  his  damage.  Finally  he  forbade  her  ever  to 
mention  the  subject  again. 

But  she,  with  a  woman's  persistence  and  untiring 
tongue,  never  ceased  to  talk  of  it,  until  at  last  it  hap- 
pened one  day  that  he  turned  red  with  rage,  and 
struck  the  ground  with  his  sword. 

"By  God's  Tooth,"  he  swore,  "if  you  want  to  free 
the  folk  of  Coventry  of  their  tax,  you  will  have  to 
mount  your  horse  and  ride  naked  before  all  the  people 
through  the  market  of  the  town,  from  one  end  of  it 
to  the  other!  Until  you  have  done  that,  I  will  not 
listen  to  you!" 

Whereupon  Godiva  was  silent  for  a  moment.  Then 
she  asked  gently,  "But  would  you  give  me  permis- 
sion to  do  such  a  thing  if  I  were  willing?" 

"I  would!  "he  roared. 

Soon  after  this,  the  countess,  beloved  of  all,  loosed 
her  hair  and  let  down  her  tresses,  which  covered  the 
whole  of  her  body  like  a  veil,  except  her  fair  feet,  and 
then,  mounting  on  a  milk-white  horse,  she  rode  toward 
the  town.  The  townsfolk,  who  had  been  warned  by 
her  in  advance,  of  her  coming,  and  of  the  reason  for  it, 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      133 

retired  into  their  houses  and  drew  down  their  shutters 
and  shades.  So  she  rode  through  the  empty  market 
place  without  being  seen,  and,  having  ended  her 
journey,  she  returned  with  gladness  to  her  husband, 
and  obtained  of  him  what  she  had  asked.  The  Earl 
Leofric  freed  the  town  of  its  tax,  and  he  gave  the  town 
a  Charter  of  Freedom,  sealing  the  parchment  docu- 
ment with  his  own  red  seal. 

To  this  day  in  Coventry  there  is  a  wooden  statue 
of  a  man  called  Peeping  Tom,  which  still  looks  out 
of  the  northeast  top  window  of  the  King's  Head  Inn. 
Peeping  Tom  is  said  to  have  lifted  up  his  shutter 
when  the  Lady  Godiva  passed  through  the  market 
place,  and  it  is  generally  believed  that  he  was  struck 
blind  on  the  spot. 

ROBIN  HOOD  AND  THE  BUTCHERS'  GILD 

This  is  one  of  the  many  stories  of  Robin  Hood  the 
Outlaw,  who  lived  in  Sherwood  Forest  with  his  band  of 
men  all  clad  in  lincoln  green. 

Now  Sherwood  Forest  lay  in  Nottinghamshire.  In 
Robin  Hood's  day,  England  was  divided  into  counties, 
called  shires,  and  in  every  shire  there  was  an  officer 
of  the  king,  called  a  shire  reeve,  or  sheriff,  for  short. 
The  Sheriff  of  Nottinghamshire  had  to  journey  up  and 
down  the  shire  collecting  taxes  for  the  king,  and  it  was 
also  his  duty  to  bring  outlaws  to  justice.  There  was 
a  price  on  Robin  Hood's  head,  and  the  Sheriff  was  a 
man  who  loved  money,  so  he  was  always  plotting  and 


134          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

scheming  as  to  how  he  might  catch  Robin  Hood  and 
serve  him  a  summons. 

Robin  and  his  jolly  men  never  paid  any  taxes  to  the 
Sheriff.  On  the  contrary,  they  liked  to  collect  gold 
pieces  for  themselves.  If  a  fat  bishop,  or  a  nobleman, 
or  a  rich  merchant  traveled  through  Sherwood  Forest, 
Robin  Hood  would  blow  his  horn  and  call  his  men  in 
lincoln  green,  and  they  would  carry  off  the  traveler 
and  give  him  a  venison  pie  for  which  he  would  have 
to  pay  with  all  the  gold  in  his  purse.  Robin  Hood  and 
his  men  lived  merrily  in  Sherwood  Forest,  and  they 
tasted  the  King's  venison  whenever  they  wished,  which 
was  every  day.  At  that  time  the  wild  deer  were  called 
the  King's  deer,  and  it  was  unlawful  for  any  man  to  go 
a-hunting  in  the  King's  forests. 

Whenever  the  Sheriff  of  Nottinghamshire  thought 
of  Robin  Hood  and  his  bold  defiance  of  the  law, 
he  swelled  with  anger  and  turned  red  and  purple 
for  shame. 

Twice  a  year  the  Sheriff  journeyed  to  Westminster, 
near  London  town,  carrying  all  the  gold  pieces  that  he 
had  collected  in  taxes  to  the  Barons  of  the  King's 
Exchequer,  or  treasury.  The  Barons  of  the  Exchequer 
were  so  called,  because  they  sat  at  a  table  which  was 
marked  out  in  black  and  white  squares  like  a  checker- 
board. Men  were  not  very  quick  at  arithmetic  in 
those  good  old  days,  and  the  Barons  of  the  Exchequer, 
to  help  them  in  their  adding  up  and  subtracting, 
laid  their  gold  pieces  in  piles  on  the  squares  of  their 
checker  table. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      135 

On  one  of  his  journeys  to  Westminster,  the  Sheriff 
visited  the  King,  and  told  him  that  Robin  Hood  and 
his  men  were  still  hunting  in  Sherwood  Forest. 

"Send  a  Hue  and  Cry  after  them,"  said  the  King. 

In  those  days  there  were  no  policemen,  and  outlaws 
were  sometimes  hunted  down  by  a  mob  of  citizens. 


OFFICIALS  RECEIVING  AND  WEIGHING  GOLD  AT  THE  EXCHEQUER 

Such  a  mob  of  citizens,  shouting  and  crying,  and  car- 
rying sticks,  pitchforks,  and  bows  and  arrows,  was 
called  a  Hue  and  Cry. 

The  Sheriff  had  to  shake  his  head  and  answer  that 
he  could  never  persuade  the  folk  of  Nottingham  to  go 
in  a  pack  and  hunt  Robin  Hood  with  a  Hue  and  Cry. 

"Robin  Hood,"  he  said,  "is  loved  by  the  common 
folk  and  feared  by  the  rich.  Often  he  gives  to  the 
poor  a  purse  of  gold  that  he  has  stolen  from  the  rich. 
Not  in  a  hundred  years  could  I  persuade  the  folk  of 
Nottingham  to  hunt  him  down." 


136          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

"Well  then,"  said  the  King,  "I'll  set  a  big  price  of 
two  hundred  pounds  on  his  head.  That  should  make 
your  task  easy  enough." 

So  the  Sheriff  journeyed  back  to  Nottingham,  plot- 
ting and  scheming  as  to  how  he  might  capture  Robin 
Hood  and  gain  the  two  hundred  pounds  that  the  King 
had  set  on  his  head,  for  the  Sheriff  was  a  man  who 
loved  money. 

He  laid  three  plots,  but  these  plots  failed  one  after 
the  other,  and  each  of  them  is  a  separate  story  by 
itself.  Then  it  came  to  Robin's  ears  that  a  price  of 
two  hundred  pounds  had  been  set  on  his  head,  and  he 
thought  it  was  high  time  to  play  a  trick  on  the  Sheriff. 

One  midsummer  day,  Robin  was  walking  through  the 
green  forest,  when  he  saw  a  butcher  riding  along  the 
highway,  with  a  good  pile  of  meat  on  his  mare's  back. 

"Good  morrow,  good  fellow,"  said  Robin  to  the 
butcher. 

"Good  morrow,"  replied  the  butcher,  eyeing  him, 
"and  Heaven  keep  me  safe  from  Robin  Hood,  for  if 
I  were  to  meet  him,  I  might  lose  all  my  meat!" 

"I  like  your  company  very  well,"  said  Robin  cheer- 
fully. "What  have  you  got  to  sell?" 

"Flesh-meat,  master,"  said  the  butcher,  "with  which 
I  am  going  to  Nottingham  market." 

"What  is  the  price  of  your  flesh-meat,"  said  Robin 
Hood,  "and  of  your  mare  that  carries  it?  Tell  me, 
for  if  you  treat  me  well,  I  may  buy  both." 

"Four  marks,"  said  the  butcher.  "I  cannot  make  it 
less." 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      137 

"Sit  down  then,  and  count  out  my  money/'  said 
Robin  Hood.  "I  will  try  for  once  and  see  if  I  make  a 
success  as  a  butcher." 

When  the  four  marks  were  counted  out,  Robin  Hood 
got  up  on  the  mare,  and  away  he  rode  to  Nottingham 
market,  where  he  offered  such  good  pennyworths  that 
he  had  sold  all  his  meat  by  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

When  the  market  was  over,  a  butcher,  stepping  up 
to  Robin  Hood,  said:  "Brother,  you  are  the  freest 
butcher  that  ever  came  to  this  market.  We  be  all  of 
one  trade,  and  all  of  one  gild,  come  let  us  dine  together. 
The  Butchers'  Gild  is  to  give  a  dinner  to-night,  and  all 
the  butchers  of  Nottingham  will  be  there." 

In  those  days,  the  tradesmen  and  workmen  of  the 
towns  all  belonged  to  gilds.  In  Nottingham  there  were 
the  Butchers'  Gild,  the  Cobblers'  Gild,  the  Black- 
smiths' Gild,  the  Carpenters'  Gild,  the  Weavers'  Gild, 
and  many  others.  The  gildsmen  had  no  masters  out- 
side the  gild,  and  they  controlled  all  the  money  of  their 
trade,  so  they  were  often  wealthy  enough  to  give 
each  other  big  dinners,  at  which  they  ate  huge  rounds 
of  roast  beef,  and  drank  barrels  of  brown  ale. 

Robin  accepted  the  invitation  of  the  butcher,  and 
went  out  to  dine  at  the  feast  of  the  Butchers'  Gild,  in 
one  of  the  inns  of  Nottingham. 

Robin  had  no  sooner  sat  down,  than  he  called  for 
a  cup  of  ale  and  drank  to  the  Butchers'  Gild,  telling 
all  the  gildsmen  to  be  merry,  for  if  there  were  five 
pounds  to  pay  for  the  feast,  he  would  pay  it  down, 
every  penny. 


138          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

''You're  the  bravest  blade/'  said  the  butchers, 
"that  ever  came  to  Nottingham  market!"  and  they 
called  for  great  quantities  of  food  and  drink. 

Now  the  Sheriff  of  Nottingham  was  a  great  visitor 
of  inns,  for  he  was  always  on  the  road,  raking  in 
taxes  from  one  end  of  the  shire  to  the  other.  It  so 
happened  that  he  alighted  at  the  selfsame  inn  where 
Robin  was  so  bravely  entertaining  the  Butchers'  Gild. 
He  heard  the  great  noise  of  laughter  and  singing  that 
was  coming  out  of  the  dining  room,  and  he  saw  the  cups 
of  wine  that  were  being  trolled  up  and  down  the  table. 
Robin  had  let  out  his  name  to  no  one,  and  the  Sheriff 
thought  to  himself,  "This  is  some  poor  simple,  young 
fool  who  has  sold  his  land,  and  now  wants  to  spend  all 
his  money  at  once."  And  after  the  dinner,  the  Sheriff 
took  opportunity  to  speak  with  Robin. 

"What,"  said  he,  "good  fellow,  have  you  made  a 
good  market  to-day?  And  have  you  any  more  horned 
beasts  to  sell?" 

"Yes,  that  I  have,"  said  Robin  Hood  to  Master 
Sheriff,  speaking  like  a  simpleton  and  a  fool.  "I  have 
two  or  three  hundred  horned  beasts,  and  a  hundred 
acres  of  good  land  to  keep  them  on,  as  good  as  ever 
crow  flew  over." 

The  Sheriff,  being  a  man  who  loved  money,  asked 
Robin,  "Will  you  sell  me  your  three  hundred  beasts 
for  three  hundred  pounds?"  He  knew  very  well  that 
cattle  were  worth  much  more  money. 

'Yes,  that  I  will,"  answered  Robin,  with  his  mouth 
open  like  a  simpleton  and  a  fool. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      139 

So  the  Sheriff  commanded  his  horse  to  be  brought 
out,  and  taking  with  him  the  three  hundred  pounds 
in  gold  for  the  purchase,  he  rode  out  with  Robin 
Hood.  Robin  led  him  for  miles  and  miles  into  the 
depths  of  the  forest,  which  was  dark  and  lonesome 
and  wild. 

The  Sheriff,  carrying  a  good  sum  of  gold,  and  being 
surprised  at  the  wildness  and  loneliness  of  the  place, 
began  to  say  that  he  wished  himself  back  in  Notting- 
ham town. 

"Why  so?"  asked  Robin  Hood. 

"I'll  tell  you  plainly,"  said  the  Sheriff,  "I  do  not 
like  your  company." 

"No?"  said  Robin,  "Then  I'll  provide  better  com- 
pany for  you." 

"God  keep  me  from  Robin  Hood,"  muttered  the 
Sheriff,  eyeing  him,  "for  this  is  the  very  forest  he 
lives  in." 

Here  Robin  smilingly  pointed  to  a  herd  of  three 
hundred  wild  deer  passing  swiftly  through  the  forest, 
and  he  asked  the  Sheriff  how  he  liked  those  horned 
beasts,  telling  him  they  were  the  very  best  he  could 
show  him.  With  that  he  blew  his  horn,  whereupon 
Little  John  and  fifty  men  in  lincoln  green  came  up. 

Robin  Hood  told  them  he  had  brought  the  Sheriff 
of  Nottingham  to  dine  with  them. 

"He  is  welcome,"  said  Little  John,  who  was  so 
called  because  he  was  very  tall,  "for  I  know  he  will 
pay  honestly  and  handsomely  for  his  dinner," 

"I  never  doubted  it,"  said  Robin  Hood. 


140          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

They  had  their  merry  feast  of  venison  out  in  an 
open  glade  of  the  forest,  roasting  their  meat  over  huge 
wood  fires,  and  washing  it  down  with  drinks  of  ale  stolen 
from  rich  merchants.  After  all  had  eaten,  Robin  Hood 
took  the  Sheriff's  purse,  containing  the  three  hundred 
pounds  of  gold,  to  pay  for  the  dinner.  Then,  leading 
him  back  through  the  forest  toward  Nottingham  town, 
he  asked  to  be  remembered  kindly  to  the  Sheriff's 
wife,  and  ran  laughing  away. 

When  he  rejoined  his  company,  Robin  took  Little 
John  by  the  hand  and  they  danced  together  round  an 
old  oak  tree,  with  a  song  upon  their  lips  and  joy 
in  their  hearts. 

THE  SHIRE  MEETING 

As  the  towns  of  England  grew  bigger  and  richer,  the 
serfs  and  tenants  who  worked  on  the  country  estates 
of  great  noblemen  soon  began  to  see  that  the  townsfolk 
were  better  off  than  they  were.  The  townsfolk  were 
free;  the  country  folk  were  little  better  than  slaves. 

The  workmen  in  the  towns  had  strengthened  them- 
selves by  joining  together  in  gilds,  and  they  managed 
their  own  affairs  entirely.  They  controlled  the  money 
of  their  trade,  and  they  controlled  the  conditions  of 
their  work.  On  the  other  hand,  the  country  folk  were 
the  servants  of  rich  lords.  They  had  to  work  con- 
tinually under  the  management  of  the  lords'  bailiffs, 
and  they  owed  many  duties  to  the  lords.  They  had, 
at  different  times  of  the  year,  to  give  payments  of 
money  and  goods  such  as  geese,  chickens,  hay,  milk, 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      141 

or  butter.  It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  the 
serfs  became  discontented.  Many  of  them  ran  away 
to  the  towns,  and  thus  gained  their  freedom. 

This  caused  great  trouble  and  confusion.  At  the 
end  of  the  fourteenth  century,  so  many  serfs  had  run 
away  and  escaped  from  the  country  estates  that  the 
lords  of  the  manors  could  not  find  enough  men  to 
work  on  the  land.  They  were  highly  indignant,  and 
accordingly  set  a  movement  on  foot  to  bring  back 
serfage,  or  half-slavery,  and  thus  force  the  country 
people  to  work  for  them. 

Thereupon  the  serfs  in  the  southeast  of  England 
decided  that  they  would  fight  for  their  freedom.  They 
collected  weapons  of  all  kinds — hunting  knives,  pitch- 
forks, reaping  hooks,  bills,  and  bows — and  they  marched 
along  the  country  roads,  planning  to  journey  to  Lon- 
don and  lay  their  case  before  the  King. 

It  so  happened  that  one  of  these  bands  of  serfs  passed 
through  a  little  country  town  where  a  shire  meeting  was 
being  held. 

Knights  and  squires  had  come  riding  into  the  town 
from  all  over  the  shire  and  every  little  village  had  sent 
its  reeve  and  four  assistants  chosen  by  the  villagers. 
All  the  townsfolk  and  all  the  country  folk  were  pouring 
out  of  the  gates  of  the  town  towards  a  big  meadow 
where  the  shire  meeting  was  to  be  held.  They  were  led 
by  the  Sheriff  and  the  Judge,  both  riding  along  on  horse- 
back, in  great  pomp. 

The  serfs  hid  their  weapons  and  mingled  with  the 
crowd,  curious  to  see  what  was  going  to  happen. 


142          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

When  the  crowd  had  collected  in  the  meadow,  it  was 
divided  up  into  two  parts,  the  townsfolk  in  the  one 
part,  the  country  folk  in  the  other  part. 

Then  the  Sheriff  stood  up.  He  was  a  great,  heavy, 
strong  man,  with  a  face  that  was  brown,  like  a  nut,  and 
a  nose  that  was  red  and  purple,  like  a  plum.  He  called 
out  in  a  loud,  thick  voice: 

"Quiet,  good  people!  Cease  your  talking  and 
shuffling  and  coughing  and  listen  to  me.  It  is  the 
business  of  this  meeting  to  choose  four  good  men  to 
be  sent  to  Westminster,  near  London  town,  to  sit  with 
the  King  in  Parliament,  the  Common  Council  of  the 
Kingdom.  The  townsfolk  must  choose  two  good 
townsmen,  and  the  country  folk  must  choose  two  dis- 
creet knights — good,  honest  men  who  will  look  after 
our  interests  with  the  King,  and  stand  up  sturdily 
for  our  rights.  Silence  there!  The  townsmen  who 
are  chosen  will  be  paid  two  shillings  a  day,  for  the  cost 
of  the  journey  to  London  and  their  food  and  lodging 
in  that  town  while  Parliament  is  sitting,  and  the  knights 
will  be  paid  four  shillings  a  day.  This  money  is  to  come 
out  of  the  taxes." 

After  he  had  made  this  solemn  speech,  the  Sheriff 
brought  forward  several  men  and  called  out  their  names 
in  his  loud,  deep  voice.  The  people  standing  around 
him  in  the  crowd  shouted  "Aye,"  or  "Nay."  When 
the  ayes  were  loud  and  strong,  the  man  whose  name 
had  been  called  was  chosen,  or  elected,  but  when  the 
nays  were  louder,  then  another  man  was  brought  for- 
ward instead,  and  so  on,  until  two  townsmen  and  two 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      143 

knights  had  been  chosen  by  the  voice  of  the  crowd. 
The  noblemen  in  clanking  armor  shouted,  the  gildsmen 
of  the  towns  sang  out  lustily,  the  yeomen  farmers  in 
their  woolen  tunics  roared,  and  the  ploughmen  bel- 
lowed, ?.ll  making  their  ayes  and  nays  as  loud  and 
brassy  as  possible. 

When  the  business  of  the  election  was  finished,  and 
men  were  beginning  to  move  away  to  the  place  where 
the  lawsuits  were  to  be  tried,  one  of  the  men  who  had 
hidden  his  knife  and  his  bow  and  arrows  jumped  up  on 
to  a  barrel  and  began  to  make  a  speech  to  the  crowd. 

"Good  sirs,"  he  cried,  "you  have  been  standing  up 
for  your  ancient  rights  and  liberties  as  Englishmen,  and 
all  of  you  were  as  equals  in  this  shire  meeting.  The 
voices  of  the  ploughmen  who  shouted  aye  or  nay  were 
as  loud  as  the  voices  of  the  noblemen.  Now  by  what 
right  do  the  noblemen  hold  us  poor  ploughmen  who 
are  serfs  in  serfage,  which  is  little  better  than  slavery? 
By  what  right  are  they  whom  we  call  nobles  greater 
folk  than  we  ?  If  we  are  all  come  of  the  same  father  and 
mother,  Adam  and  Eve,  as  the  Holy  Church  teaches  us, 
by  what  right  can  they  prove  that  they  are  more  noble 
than  we?  They  make  us  gain  for  them  by  our  work 
what  they  spend  in  their  pride.  They  are  clothed  in 
silk  and  velvet,  and  we  are  covered  with  leather  or 
rags.  They  have  wine  and  spices  and  fair  white  bread, 
while  we  have  oatcake  or  straw.  They  have  comfort 
and  merriment  and  fine  castles;  we  have  pain  and  labor, 
and  the  wind  and  the  rain  in  the  fields.  And  yet  we 
are  all  come  of  the  same  father  and  mother,  Adam  and 


144          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Eve.   We  are  all  men  together.    What  is  the  difference 
between  a  gentleman  and  a  serf?    When  Adam  digged 
and  Eve  span,  who  was  then  the  gentleman?" 
This  rime  ran  from  lip  to  lip  in  the  crowd: 

When  Adam  digged  and  Eve  span, 
Who  was  then  the  gentleman  ? 

Some  of  the  poorer  folk  in  the  crowd  shouted  ap- 
plause; but  a  nobleman  rode  up  to  the  man  who  had 
made  the  speech  and  knocked  him  off  the  barrel  with  a 
blow  from  his  sword,  saying: 

"Ho,  my  good  fellow,  who  gave  you  the  right  to 
make  such  a  speech  as  that,  stirring  up  the  people  to 
fighting  and  rebellion  ?  By  the  looks  of  you  I  take  you 
to  be  a  runaway  serf.  Mark  my  words,  serfage  must 
come  back,  or  the  people  of  England  will  starve.  We 
nobles  can  find  no  one  to  work  on  our  lands.  You  de- 
serve a  good  whacking,  and  I  am  the  man  to  give  it  to 
you.  Take  that,  and  that,  and  that!" 

Whack,  whack,  whack,  the  nobleman  began  to  rain 
blows  on  the  man's  head  and  back  and  shoulders.  At 
this,  many  of  the  runaway  serfs  in  the  crowd  produced 
their  weapons,  in  defence  of  their  comrade,  and  there 
was  soon  a  free-for-all  fight,  very  noisy  and  stormy. 
The  knights  and  squires  and  men-at-arms  in  the  crowd 
took  sides  with  the  nobleman,  while  the  reeves  and 
their  assistants  took  sides  with  the  serfs.  The  Sheriff 
now  appeared  on  the  scene  and  the  fighting  died  down. 
None  were  killed,  but  many  were  bruised  and  bleeding, 
and  several  serfs  were  marched  off  to  prison. 


ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES      145 

Such  disturbances  and  riots  were  going  on  all  over 
England.  The  country  folk  finally  gathered  them- 
selves together  in  such  great  armies  that  the  lords 
grew  frightened,  and  they  gave  up  their  plan  to  bring 
back  serfage.  So  it  came  about  that  all  Englishmen 
became  free  men,  and  were  proud  of  their  liberty. 

TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  In  England,  during  the  Middle  Ages, 
there  was  great  inequality  and  injustice  in  the  social  life  of  the 
people.  Nevertheless,  in  spite  of  its  many  confusions,  this  was 
an  age  of  progress.  The  beginnings  of  representative  govern- 
ment, and  the  end  of  serfdom  paved  the  way  for  a  democracy 
less  limited  than  that  of  Athens.  What  have  you  read  that 
proves  or  disproves  any  of  these  statements? 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Describe  the  English  Parliament  of  the  Middle  Ages. 

2.  Had  the  King  of  England  complete  control  over  money 
raised  by  taxes  in  the  time  of  Richard  the  Lion-hearted  ? 

3.  Describe  the  condition  of  the  country  folk  in  England  in 
the  Middle  Ages. 

4.  What  was  a  serf? 

5.  Compare  an  American  farm  of  to-day  with  the  mediaeval 
manor. 

6.  What  were  the  duties  of  a  sheriff? 

7.  Describe  the  condition  of  the  townspeople  in  England  in 
the  later  Middle  Ages  as  compared  with  that  of  the  country  folk. 

8.  What  was  a  gild? 

9.  How  was  an  election  carried  on  at  a  shire  meeting? 

10.  What  is  the  chief  advantage  of  representative  government  ? 

11.  What  arguments  were  used  in  "The  Shire  Meeting"  by 
the  serfs  who  desired  freedom? 

12.  What  arguments  were  used  by  the  lords  who  wished  to 
bring  back  serfage? 


CHAPTER   VII 
THE   SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA 

The  century  that  followed  the  discovery  of  America 
by  Columbus  was  a  century  of  great  sea  voyages  and  dis- 
coveries and  explorations.  Many  romantic  tales  were 
told  in  England  of  the  beauties  and  riches  of  America, 
so  that  adventurous  Englishmen  were  eager  to  found 
English  colonies  in  the  new  Western  continent. 

During  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  in  the  year 
1584,  a  wealthy  gentleman  named  Sir  Walter  Raleigh 
sent  two  sailing  vessels  westward,  commanded  by 
Philip  Amidas  and  Arthur  Barlow.  On  the  fourth  of 
July,  Amidas  and  Barlow  reached  America  and  landed 
on  the  coast  of  what  is  now  North  Carolina.  The 
weather  was  fair,  and  their  experience  ashore  was  very 
pleasant.  They  wandered  through  a  beautiful  forest 
of  pine  trees  and  cedars,  and  met  with  some  friendly 
Indians  who  were  ready  to  exchange  valuable  furs  for 
English  knives. 

When  these  sailors  came  back  to  England  they  said 
that  the  flowers  in  the  forests  of  America  were  so 
fragrant  that  to  live  in  that  beautiful  land  would  be 
like  living  "in  the  midst  of  some  delicate  garden/' 
Queen  Elizabeth,  the  Virgin  Queen  of  England,  was 
much  interested  to  hear  of  this  beautiful  region  that 

146 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       147 


SIR  WALTER  RALEIGH 

When  his  servant  first  saw  Sir  Walter  smoking,  he  thought  his  master  on  fire  and  threw  a  tankard 

of  ale  over  him. 

had  been  discovered  by  English  sailors  during  her 
reign,  and  she  decided  that  it  should  be  called  Virginia, 
in  honor  of  herself. 

All  kinds  of  fanciful  stories  concerning  America  be- 
gan to  spread  through  England.  The  wonders  of  the 
East,  as  well  as  of  the  West,  were  heaped  together 
in  these  stories.  Ignorant  folk,  hearing  them,  im- 
agined that  all  the  fruits  of  the  earth  grew  in  America. 
They  had  visions  of  bright  oranges,  glowing  like 
golden  lamps  in  a  green  night,  and  of  pomegranates 


148          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

bursting  with  scarlet  seeds.  They  fancied  that  the 
Indian  chiefs  lived  like  the  great  Emperors  of  the 
East,  wearing  crowns  of  jewels  and  garments  studded 
with  pearls. 

"I  tell  thee,"  one  ignorant  sailor  would  explain  to 
another,  "gold  in  that  country  is  as  plentiful  as  iron 
in  this.  The  commonest  frying  pans  there  are  made  of 
solid  gold,  because  the  savages  see  naught  of  value 
in  it.  Why  man,  there  is  no  labor  in  that  country, 
and  no  poverty;  but  of  prowling  lions  and  tigers  there's 
a  good  plenty.  The  great  trees  in  the  forests  have 
stayed  even  as  God  planted  them  hundreds  of  years 
ago,  and  all  the  country  is  wondrous  pretty,  like  the 
Garden  of  Eden/' 

The  common  folk  of  England  told  each  other  such 
simple  tales  as  these;  and  even  educated  men  were 
convinced  that  great  mines  of  gold  and  silver  were 
only  waiting  to  be  discovered  all  along  the  coast  of 
North  America. 

Sir  Walter  Raleigh  made  several  further  attempts  to 
colonize  Virginia.  He  sent  many  ships  westward  filled 
with  men,  but  poorly  supplied  with  provisions.  All 
these  early  expeditions  ended  in  disaster.  Food  was 
scarce,  and  the  Indians  were  unfriendly  to  the  new 
white  settlers. 

Then  in  the  year  1606,  a  trading  company,  called  the 
"London  Company"  was  formed,  and  three  small 
ships  sailed  from  London  carrying  the  group  of  men 
who  were  to  establish  the  first  permanent  English  col- 
ony in  America. 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       149 

High  hopes  were  held  of  this  expedition,  and  Michael 
Drayton  wrote  a  poem  about  it: 

To  THE  VIRGINIAN  VOYAGE 

Britons,  you  stay  too  long; 
Quickly  aboard  bestow  you, 
And  with  a  merry  gale 
Swell  your  stretched  sail, 
With  vows  as  strong 

As  the  winds  that  blow  you. 

And  cheerfully  at  sea 
Success  you  still  entice 
To  get  the  pearl  and  gold 
And  ours  to  hold 
Virginia, 

Earth's  only  Paradise. 

Where  nature  hath  in  store 
Fowl,  venison,  and  fish, 
And  the  fruitful'st  soil 
Without  your  toil, 
Three  harvests  more, 

All  greater  than  you  wish. 

Most  of  the  men  of  this  expedition  belonged  to  the 
class  of  gentlemen,  and  were  not  used  to  working  with 
their  hands.  If  those  who  organized  the  new  colony 
had  known  more  about  the  hardships  of  a  rough  life 
in  the  wilderness,  they  would  surely  have  chosen  as 
settlers  fewer  fine  gentlemen,  and  more  farmers  and 
skilled  workmen.  As  it  was,  the  company  was  a  band 
of  adventurers,  made  up  of  bold,  bad  men  as  well  as 
of  good  and  brave.  Some  of  the  gentlemen  were  leaving 


ISO          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

England  to  escape  paying  their  debts,  and  they  were 
an  unruly  set.  Before  the  ships  had  gone  very  far  out 
to  sea,  there  was  a  quarrel  among  the  passengers. 

Now  King  James,  who  had  succeeded  Queen  Eliz- 
abeth, had  taken  an  interest  in  the  proposed  colony, 
and  had  given  instructions  for  its  government.  He  had 
said  that  the  colonists  should  be  ruled  by  a  council  of 
six  men,  and  that  one  of  these  six  councilors  should 
be  chosen  President.  Then  he  had  written  out  a  list  of 
the  names  of  the  six  councilors.  But,  for  some  foolish 
reason,  he  placed  this  list  in  a  sealed  box,  and  gave  strict 
orders  that  this  box  was  not  to  be  opened  until 
America  was  reached. 

During  the  voyage,  therefore,  there  was  no  one 
to  direct  and  keep  order.  Soon  the  question  arose, 
Who  was  to  be  President?  As  the  result  of  a  seri- 
ous dispute  and  quarrel,  a  young  man  named  John 
Smith  was  accused  of  plotting  mutiny  and  was  thrown 
into  irons. 

John  Smith  was  young,  good-looking,  strong,  and 
brave.  Of  late  years  his  life  had  been  one  thrilling  ad- 
venture after  another.  To  amuse  his  fellow  passengers 
on  the  tedious  journey,  he  told  them  wonderful  tales 
about  himself:  how  he  had  fought  against  the  Turks 
in  single  combat,  and  had  cut  off  three  Turks'  heads 
in  succession;  how  he  had  been  taken  prisoner  and  sold 
into  slavery;  how  a  beautiful  foreign  princess  had 
fallen  in  love  with  him;  how  he  had  finally  escaped 
from  captivity  and  had  travelled  on  horseback  through 
Russia,  Poland,  and  Germany  .  .  . 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       151 


These  stories  were  probably1  true,  because  Smith  was 
the  kind  of  man  who  is  born  for  adventure,  but  some  of 
those  who  listened  to  him  were  jealous.  They  them- 
selves wished  to  be  the 
leaders  of  the  colony.  No 
doubt  they  said  to  them- 
selves, "This  Smith  is  a 
boaster  and  a  braggart 
and  a  dangerous  fellow." 

After  the  shores  of  Vir- 
ginia were  sighted,  King 
James's  box  was  opened, 
and  it  was  found  that  the 
name  of  Captain  John 
Smith  was  on  the  list  of 
councilors.  So  he  was 
taken  out  of  chains,  and 
before  long  his  natural 
leadership  made  itself 
felt.  Later  he  became  the 
President  of  the  Council. 

The  first  act  of  the  settlers  was  to  search  for  a  suit- 
able place  where  they  might  build  a  town.  After 
seventeen  days  a  site  was  chosen,  and  it  was  decided 
to  call  the  town  Jamestown,  in  honor  of  the  King. 

Now  came  the  work  of  cutting  down  trees  in  the 
forest  and  shaping  planks  for  houses.  The  fifty-four 
gentlemen  in  the  party  did  not  know  how  to  cut  down 

1  Many  historians  have  doubted  the  truthfulness  of  Smith.  Fiske, 
however,  maintains  that  his  stories  were  not  exaggerated. 


CAPTAIN  JOHN  SMITH 


152          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

trees  or  make  clapboards,  so  they  had  to  be  conducted 
through  the  forests  in  parties  under  the  leadership  of 
the  more  capable  men,  such  as  John  Smith.  It  seemed 
very  strange  to  these  gentlemen  that  they  should 
have  to  perform  humble  labor.  After  a  week  or  so, 


THE  LANDING  AT  JAMESTOWN 

however,  they  felt  that  they  were  learning  their  new 
trade,  and  they  began  to  enjoy  their  work.  It  was  a 
delight  to  them  to  swing  their  axes  and  hear  the  great 
trees  thunder  as  they  fell.  But  one  trouble  developed: 
their  tender  fingers  soon  became  covered  with  blisters, 
and  after  a  few  days  these  blisters  proved  so  annoying 
that  the  echo  of  every  third  blow  of  the  axes  was 
drowned  in  a  loud  oath  from  one  of  the  gentlemen. 
Captain  Smith,  to  cure  this  bad  habit,  later  had  all  the 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       153 

oaths  counted  up,  and  at  night  a  can  of  water  for  every 
oath  was  poured  down  the  sleeve  of  every  offender. 
After  a  week  or  so  of  such  washings,  scarcely  an  oath 
was  to  be  heard. 

"Nevertheless/*  said  Captain  Smith  to  himself, 
"twenty  good  workmen  had  been  better  than  hundreds 
of  such  gentlemen/' 

After  the  ships  had  returned  to  England,  the  settlers 
found  it  difficult  to  procure  enough  food.  They  all 
worked  for  the  common  store,  and  were  given  food  out 
of  a  common  kettle — nothing  but  wheat  and  barley 
boiled  in  water.  Then  summer  came  on,  and  these 
Englishmen  accustomed  to  the  cool  damp  climate  of 
their  native  island  began  to  suffer  from  the  intense 
heat.  No  doubt  in  former  years,  in  England,  they  had 
often  complained  of  the  damp  weather,  but  now  they 
gazed  up  at  the  scorching  sun  and  sighed  to  them- 
selves, "Oh,  for  a  cool  grey  sky!"  Many  fell  sick,  and 
some  died.  It  was  most  pitiful  to  hear  the  groaning 
of  the  sufferers  in  every  corner  of  the  settlement. 

John  Smith  knew  that  the  Indians  had  plentiful 
harvests  of  corn;  and,  seeing  the  desperate  condition 
of  his  companions,  he  decided  to  explore  the  country 
and  trade  with  the  Indians. 

His  first  journey  was  successful.  In  return  for  beads, 
copper,  and  hatchets,  the  Indians  gave  him  venison 
and  corn.  When  the  weather  turned  cooler  with  the 
approach  of  winter,  the  rivers  around  Jamestown 
were  covered  with  swans,  geese,  ducks,  and  cranes,  so 
that  the  colonists  could  at  last  feast  royally  every  day. 


154          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

In  the  month  of  December,  Smith  decided  to  under- 
take another  journey  of  exploration. 

With  two  white  companions  and  two  Indians,  he 
went  up  the  Chickahominy  River  in  a  canoe.  Before 
this  little  party  had  proceeded  very  far,  it  was  sud- 
denly surrounded  and  attacked  by  a  band  of  two 
hundred  Indian  warriors.  Smith's  two  companions 
were  killed,  and  he  himself  was  taken  prisoner,  but 
not  before  he  had  shot  down  two  redskins  with  his 
pistol.  He  soon  found  out  that  his  captors  intended  to 
put  him  to  death.  Casting  about  in  his  mind,  desper- 
ately, for  some  means  of  distracting  them,  an  idea  came 
to  him,  and  he  pulled  out  his  ivory  compass.  Then, 
showing  the  magnetic  needle  to  the  savages,  he  began 
to  play  upon  their  simple  wonders  and  fears.  Using 
sign  language,  and  a  few  Indian  words  that  he  had 
picked  up,  he  began  to  discourse,  like  a  man  inspired, 
on  the  marvels  of  science  and  astronomy.  He  described 
to  them  the  movements  of  the  sun,  the  moon  and  the 
stars,  the  roundness  of  the  earth,  the  immensity  of  land 
and  sea,  and  the  multitude  of  nations  and  races.  The 
Indians  gazed  at  him  open-mouthed,  and  though 
they  understood  very  little  of  what  he  was  saying,  they 
soon  believed  that  they  must  be  dealing  with  some  kind 
of  wizard.  They  were  amazed  to  find  that  they  could 
see  the  needle  in  the  compass,  but  not  touch  it,  on 
account  of  the  glass  cover.  Their  leader  took  the  com- 
pass in  his  hand,  and  turned  it  around  in  different 
directions.  Finally  he  decided  that  there  must  be 
magic  in  the  needle. 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       155 

Fearing  to  kill  a  powerful  white  medicine  man,  the 
redskins  loosened  Smith  from  the  tree  to  which  he  had 
been  tied,  and  took  him  to  an  Indian  village.  Here 
the  Indian  women  stared  at  him,  for  he  was  the  first 
white  man  they  had  ever  seen.  Perhaps  some  of  them 
thought  that  the  "paleface"  was  very  handsome. 
Warriors  collected  around  him;  he  was  put  in  the  center 
of  a  ring,  and  the  Indians  danced  a  buffalo  dance, 
singing,  and  yelling  out  hellish  screeches.  Their  faces 
and  shoulders  were  painted  bright  red  and  they  carried 
in  their  hands  the  rattles  that  grow  on  the  tails  of  some 
poisonous  snakes.  Poor  Smith  felt  as  though  he  were 
seeing  devils  in  the  midst  of  a  horrid  nightmare. 

That  night  he  was  guarded  in  a  long-house,  and 
plentiful  food  was  placed  near  him.  He  wondered 
whether  the  savages  were  trying  to  fatten  him  up  before 
eating  him.  Several  days  passed,  and  finally  he  was 
led  into  the  presence  of  Powhatan,  the  head  chief  of 
the  tribe. 

In  front  of  a  fire,  upon  a  seat  like  a  bedstead,  sat 
Powhatan,  a  great,  grim  man,  covered  with  a  long  robe 
made  of  raccoon  skins.  On  either  side  of  him  were  two 
young  girls,  and  behind  him  rows  of  men  and  women, 
with  their  heads  and  shoulders  painted  red,  and  with 
white  rings  around  their  eyes. 

A  great  shout  went  up  as  Smith  entered  the  chief's 
long-house.  He  was  treated  to  a  feast  of  good  food  for 
which  he  had  little  appetite;  then  two  huge  stones 
were  dragged  out  and  placed  in  front  of  Powhatan. 
Smith  was  carried  forward  and  stretched  out  on  the 


156 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


ground  with  his  head  resting  on  the  stones.  The 
warriors  lifted  their  clubs,  ready  to  beat  out  his  brains, 
when  suddenly  Pocahontas,  the  chief's  dearest  daugh- 
ter, sprang  from  her  seat.  She  ran  to  John  Smith, 

put  her  arms  around  his 
neck,  and  laid  her  head 
close  to  his,  entreating 
her  father  to  save  him. 
Pocahontas,  at  this 
time,  was  only  thirteen 
years  old.  Powhatan 
loved  his  little  daugh- 
ter, and  it  was  not  un- 
usual among  the  Indians 
to  spare, a  prisoner  if 
someone  in  the  tribe 
took  a  fancy  to  him. 
Pocahontas  had  thrown 
herself  down  on  the 
ground,  and  lay  there, 
trembling  with  her  kind  impulse,  her  eyes  wide  open 
and  beseeching.  The  warriors  let  fall  their  clubs,  and 
Powhatan's  heart  was  moved.  He  gave  orders  that 
Smith  should  be  let  free,  and  allowed  to  travel  back  to 
Jamestown  unhurt. 

After  this,  Pocahontas  often  came  to  Jamestown  to 
visit  Captain  Smith  and  bring  him  presents  of  corn  and 
turkeys.  He  became  very  fond  of  her  and  used  to  call 
her  his  dearest  little  jewel.  She  loved  him  like  a  father 
and  wished  him  to  call  her  "daughter." 


POCAHONTAS  IN  ENGLISH  DRESS 

This  is  a  copy  of  the  original  painting  at  Barton 
Rectory,  Norfolk,  England. 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       157 

Later  Pocahontas  married  an  Englishman  named 
John  Rolfe.  She  was  baptized  in  the  Christian  faith 
and  was  given  the  name  Rebecca.  Rolfe  brought 
his  wife  to  London,  where  her  quaint  and  charming 
ways  made  her  a  center  of  attraction.  Balls  and 
entertainments  were  given  in  her  honor,  and  she  was 
always  treated  as  a  royal  princess,  being  called  either 
the  Lady  Rebecca,  or  the  Princess  Pocahontas.  King 
James  was  inclined  to  blame  Rolfe  for  having  married 
into  a  royal  family  without  first  consulting  him! 

Powhatan  sent  to  England  in  Pocahontas's  train  a 
chief  named  Tomocomo,  instructed  to  make  a  report 
on  the  number  of  warriors  in  the  English  tribe.  He 
gave  Tomocomo  a  bundle  of  sticks  and  told  him  to  cut 
a  notch  for  every  white  man  he  should  meet.  After 
Tomocomo  had  landed  at  Plymouth  he  was  kept  very 
busy  cutting  notches,  but  when  he  arrived  in  London, 
the  poor  chief  gave  a  grunt  of  despair  and  threw 
away  his  sticks.  He  asked  to  see  King  James  and  was 
very  much  surprised  that  the  chief  of  the  great  English 
tribe  should  be  such  a  small,  weak-looking  man. 

Let  us  return  to  Captain  John  Smith  in  Virginia. 
Soon  after  his  adventure  with  Powhatan,  Smith  was 
chosen  President  of  the  Council.  He  worked  very  hard 
to  improve  the  conditions  of  the  colony,  but  he  had  to 
contend  with  great  difficulties.  One  difficulty  was  the 
treachery  of  many  of  the  Indian  tribes.  In  spite  of 
great  danger,  however,  Smith  made  long  voyages  of 
exploration  inland.  Another  difficulty  was  the  laziness 
of  the  settlers.  Every  man  in  the  colony  was  supposed 


158          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

to  work  not  for  himself  but  for  the  common  store,  and 
this  system  of  communism  encouraged  the  idlers  to 
leave  all  the  work  to  the  industrious.  Finally  things 
had  come  to  such  a  pass  that  thirty  or  forty  hard- 
working and  unselfish  men  were  supporting  the  whole 
colony,  now  increased  to  two  hundred.  As  soon  as 
Smith  was  made  President,  he  handled  the  situation 
firmly.  He  roundly  told  the  lazy  men  that  they 
would  get  nothing  to  eat  if  they  did  not  work,  and 
that  they  would  be  punished  for  idleness  according 
to  a  strict  rule.  The  colony  might  have  gone  to  pieces 
at  this  time,  had  it  not  been  for  the  fine  example 
set  by  Smith  himself  for  hard  work,  courage,  and 
endurance. 

In  the  year  1609,  Smith  was  injured, by  a  gunpow- 
der explosion,  and  was  obliged  to  go  back  to  England 
for  medical  care,  as  there  were  no  good  doctors  in  Vir- 
ginia. In  the  same  year,  the  government  of  Virginia 
was  reorganized.  The  Council  was  done  away  with, 
and  from  henceforth  the  colonists  were  ruled  by  gov- 
ernors sent  out  from  England.  Several  governors  came 
and  went,  some  mild,  some  harsh.  The  first  was  Lord 
Delaware,  after  whom  the  state  of  Delaware  is  named. 

It  was  the  fate  of  the  colony  to  pass  through  many 
times  of  hardship,  narrowly  escaping  disaster.  At  one 
terrible  period,  known  as  the  Starving  Time,  the 
settlers,  tortured  and  driven  frantic  by  hunger,  be- 
came cannibals.  We  can  hardly  describe  here  the  worst 
horrors  of  the  crisis.  Unable  to  bear  the  privations  of 
this  time,  so  many  died  that  only  a  few  were  left.  But, 


THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA       159 

by  a  stroke  of  fortune,  provisions  came  from  England, 
and  the  remnants  of  the  colony  were  saved. 

One  of  the  governors,  named  Dale,  put  an  end  to 
the  communistic  system,  and  gave  each  colonist  three 
acres  of  land  to  cultivate  for  his  own  use.  The  change 
was  magical,  and  industry  and  thrift  took  the  place 
of  laziness  and  idleness.  From  this  time  on,  the 
colony  began  to  prosper.  Some  of  the  settlers  exper- 
imented with  tobacco  crops,  and  it  was  found  that  the 
growing  of  tobacco  was  exceedingly  profitable  because 
a  high  price  was  paid  for  it  in  England. 

With  prosperity  came  the  beginning  of  democracy. 
Until  now  the  government  of  Virginia  had  never  been 
democratic.  At  first,  authority  had  been  in  the  hands 
of  a  small  Council,  then  it  had  passed  to  governors 
whose  rule,  whether  harsh  or  mild,  was  despotism.  But 
now  a  party  of  liberal,  democratic  statesmen  had  come 
into  power  in  the  English  Parliament,  and  it  was 
recognized  that  the  colonists  of  Virginia  were  ready  for 
self-government.  In  the  year  1619,  instructions  were 
sent  to  the  people  of  Virginia  to  hold  a  general  elec- 
tion, and  on  the  30th  of  July  the  elected  representa- 
tives met  in  a  general  assembly  at  Jamestown,  in 
the  little  wooden  church  there.  The  representatives 
were  called  burgesses,  and  the  General  Assembly  of 
Virginia  came  to  be  known  as  the  House  of  Burgesses. 
The  governor  and  council  of  Virginia  were  still  to  be 
appointed  by  the  English  government,  but  the  House 
of  Burgesses  was  to  have  the  full  power  of  lawmaking 
for  the  colony. 


160          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Such  was  the  beginning  of  democratic  government  in 
America.  Out  of  Virginia  later  were  to  come  some  of 
the  great  leaders  of  our  nation:  Washington ,  Jefferson, 
Madison,  Monroe,  and  Chief  Justice  Marshall.  "In 
the  unfolding  of  these  events,"  says  the  historian  John 
Fiske,  "there  is  poetic  beauty  and  grandeur,  as  the 
purpose  of  Infinite  Wisdom  reveals  itself  slowly  .  .  . 
hasting  not  but  resting  not,  heedless  of  the  clashing  aims 
and  discordant  cries  of  short-sighted  mortals,  sweeping 
their  tiny  efforts  into  its  majestic  current,  and  making 
all  contribute  to  the  fulfilment  of  God's  will." 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  Representative  government  was 
established  in  the  first  English  colony  of  North  America,  not 
owing  to  the  will  of  the  settlers,  but  because  a  party  of  liberal, 
democratic  statesmen  happened  to  come  into  power  in  the 
English  Parliament.  "In  the  unfolding  of  these  events,"  says 
John  Fiske,  "there  is  poetic  beauty  and  grandeur,  as  the  purpose 
of  Infinite  Wisdom  reveals  itself  slowly."  Can  you  trace  earlier 
events  mentioned  in  this  book  that  led  up  to  this  liberality  on  the 
part  of  Parliament? 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  was  the  Virginia  Company  governed  at  first? 

2.  Explain  why  "strenuousness, "  or  the  will  to  work  hard, 
has  always  been  considered  a  quality  particularly  necessary  to  the 
American. 

3.  Describe  the  character  of  John  Smith  as  a  pioneer. 

4.  What  is  meant  by  communism  ? 

5.  Explain  why  communism  failed  in  the  colony. 

6.  Describe  the  government  that  was  established  in  Virginia 
in  1619. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS1 

1.  THE  PURITANS  IN  ENGLAND 

2.  HOLLAND 

3.  THE  ARRIVAL  IN  AMERICA 

4.  THE  INDIANS 

5.  THE  PILGRIMS  GIVE  UP  COMMUNISM 

We  now  come  to  the  story  of  the  Pilgrims,  who  were  the 
first  white  men  to  settle  in  New  England.  They  came  to 
America  for  the  sake  of  religious  and  democratic  ideals, 
and  for  this  reason  they  have  been  called  the  Fathers  and 
Mothers  of  our  American  Democracy.  Their  story  was 
written  down  by  one  of  themselves,  William  Bradford, 
who  became  Governor  of  the  Plymouth  Colony  in  America. 

THE  PURITANS  IN  ENGLAND 

When  James  I  was  King  of  England  in  the  beginning 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  there  lived  in  the  two  little 
English  villages  of  Scrooby  and  Austerfield  a  company 
of  simple,  honest  people  who  were  called  Puritans. 
Their  leader  was  a  man  named  William  Brewster.  He 
was  the  bailiff  of  the  Archbishop  of  York,  and  he  lived 
in  Scrooby  in  an  old  tumble-down  manor  house  which 

1  This  story  is  based  on  the  records  of  the  Pilgrims,  and  on  The  Story 
of  the  Pilgrims  for  Children,  by  Roland  Usher;  The  Macmillan  Company. 

161 


162          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

belonged  to  the  Archbishop.  Mr.  Brewster  had  three 
children,  whose  names  were  Jonathan,  Patience,  and 
Fear.  In  Austerfield,  nearby,  lived  Mr.  William  Brad- 
ford, who  was  also  a  Puritan. 

The  religion  of  the  Puritans  differed  in  form  from  that 
of  their  neighbors,  so  that  often  when  Mr.  Brewster's 
children  went  out  into  the  streets  of  Scrooby,  the  other 
village  children  would  point  at  them  and  shout  "  Pu- 
ritan, Puritan,"  and  laugh  at  them  or  throw  stones. 
Most  of  the  people  of  England  belonged  to  the  Church 
of  England  which  was  governed  by  archbishops  and 
bishops  chosen  by  the  King.  There  were  many  Puri- 
tans in  England  and  it  was  their  wish,  they  said,  to 
purify  the  English  Church;  but  this  particular  group 
at  Scrooby  and  Austerfield  did  not  believe  in  the 
Church  of  England.  They  wanted  to  worship  accord- 
ing to  their  own  beliefs,  and  they  wanted  to  choose 
their  own  ministers.  Because  they  wanted  to  separate 
from  the  Church  of  England  they  were  called  Separat- 
ists as  well  as  Puritans. 

In  many  other  ways  the  Puritans  were  different  from 
their  neighbors.  They  dressed  simply,  in  grey  and 
brown  and  black,  and  they  spoke  quietly  and  seriously, 
never  swearing  nor  using  coarse  language.  They  were 
strict  and  stern  in  their  ways,  and  they  set  their  faces 
against  all  kinds  of  extravagance.  At  that  time  some  of 
the  nobles  of  England  had  very  loose  and  disgraceful 
habits.  They  spent  the  greater  part  of  their  time  in 
amusing  themselves;  their  clothes  were  very  magnifi- 
cent, their  dinners  long  and  heavy,  and  they  drank 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        163 

so  much  wine  that  drunkenness  was  not  considered 
shameful.  The  following  story  is  told  of  the  court  of 
King  James. 

When  the  King  of  Denmark  came  to  London  on  a 
visit,  a  play  or  pageant  which  represented  the  visit  of 
the  Queqn  of  Sheba  to  King  Solomon  was  prepared 
especially  for  the  occasion.  A  magnificent  entertain- 
ment was  given  by  King  James,  and  hundreds  of  grand 
ladies  and  gentlemen  attended.  First  there  was  a  long 
dinner,  then  came  the  play.  But  the  play  did  not 
prove  a  success.  The  noble  lady  who  took  the  part  of 
the  Queen  of  Sheba  had  to  present  a  tray  with  a  cup 
of  wine,  a  dish  of  custard,  a  pitcher  of  cream,  and  a 
plate  of  cakes  to  the  King  of  Denmark,  who  was  play- 
ing Solomon.  But  the  Queen  of  Sheba  was  so  drunk 
that  she  fell  and  spilled  all  the  wine,  the  custard,  the 
cream,  and  the  cakes  into  the  King's  lap.  Servants  were 
called  at  once,  and  they  mopped  up  the  mess  as  well 
as  they  could  with  napkins.  Then  the  King  of  Den- 
mark himself  stepped  out  on  to  the  floor  of  the  dance 
hall  and  tried  to  dance,  but  he  too  was  tipsy  and,  losing 
his  balance,  toppled  over.  The  three  ladies  who  had  the 
parts  of  Faith,  Hope,  and  Charity  were  quite  unable 
to  speak  their  lines  distinctly,  and  the  one  who  was 
dressed  up  as  Victory  had  to  be  put  out  of  the  palace. 
She  was  hopelessly  drunk  and  created  a  disturbance  by 
slapping  all  the  lords  and  ladies  smartly  in  the  face 
with  her  olive  branch  of  peace! 

When  we  read  this  well-known  story  we  can  un- 
derstand why  the  Puritans  were  driven  to  the  other 


164          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

extreme  of  conduct,  and  why  they  brought  up  their 
children  according  to  very  strict  rules. 

The  little  company  of  Puritans,  or  Separatists,  who 
lived  in  the  village  of  Scrooby  used  to  meet  together 
in  Mr.  Brewster's  house  every  Sunday,  and  hold  a 
religious  service.  They  had  elected  as  their  minister  a 
man  named  John  Robinson.  It  was  against  the  law 
for  them  to  choose  their  own  minister  in  this  way, 
and  they  lived  in  constant  danger  of  being  arrested. 
King  James  was  the  enemy  of  the  Puritans.  He  said, 
"I  will  make  the  Puritans  conform  to  the  Church  of 
England,  or  I  will  harry  them  out  of  the  country,  or 
else  worse." 

And  in  the  year  1607  the  news  came  to  Scrooby  that 
Puritans  in  other  parts  of  the  country  were  being 
arrested  and  thrown  into  prison,  and  that  a  summons 
had  been  given  out  to  arrest  Mr.  Brewster  and  Mr. 
Bradford.  As  soon  as  this  news  came,  Mr.  Brewster 
sent  messages  to  all  the  Puritans  of  Scrooby  and 
Austerfield,  and  called  them  to  a  secret  meeting,  at 
night,  in  his  old  manor  house. 

Then  he  said  to  them:  "Hard  times  and  suffering  are 
now  before  us,  because  King  James  has  sworn  that  he 
will  harry  us  out  of  the  land.  We  must  keep  together 
and  bear  our  fate  with  cheerfulness  and  content. 
But  if  we  flee  not  from  this  country,  we  shall  be  cast 
into  prison.  Whither  shall  we  go?  I  would  now  de- 
mand of  any  of  you,  is  there  a  better  country  than 
Holland?  It  is  near  the  coast  of  England,  and  the 
Dutch  will  allow  us  to  worship  as  we  please." 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        165 

The  Puritans  talked  over  their  flight,  and  it  was 
agreed  that  they  should  flee  to  Holland,  because  Hol- 
land was  then  one  of  the  most  democratic  countries  in 
the  world.  People  there  were  allowed  liberty  of  con- 
science, v/hich  means  that  they  were  allowed  to  worship 
as  they  pleased. 

After  this  meeting,  the  Puritans  packed  some  of  their 
belongings  into  bundles,  and  hurried  away  from  their 
homes.  They  all  made  the  journey  together  on  foot, 
and  often  had  to  hide  behind  hedges  or  in  roadside 
ditches,  because  the  officers  of  the  King  had  already 
reached  Scrooby  and  were  out  hunting  for  them. 

Finally  they  came  to  the  seacoast,  near  a  town  called 
Boston,  in  Lincolnshire,  after  which  Boston  in  Massa- 
chusetts was  later  to  be  named.  They  did  not  actually 
go  into  Boston,  but  turned  aside  to  a  stretch  of  lonely 
beach,  and  waited  for  their  ship.  Arrangements  had 
been  made  with  a  Dutch  shipmaster,  and  in  the 
middle  of  the  night  they  saw  the  ship  approaching, 
with  its  headlights  shining  through  the  fog  and  dark- 
ness. They  put  out  in  little  rowboats,  and  clambered 
on  board  the  ship  with  all  their  belongings.  At  last 
they  thought  they  were  safe  from  their  pursuers. 

But  the  next  morning  customs  officers  came  on  board 
and  arrested  them,  because  it  was  not  lawful  to  take 
money  or  goods  out  of  England  without  special  per- 
mission from  the  government.  Men,  women,  and 
children  were  pushed  back  roughly  into  the  rowboats; 
and  their  bundles  were  thrown  after  them,  pell-mell. 
They  were  taken  to  Boston  and  tried  in  a  court  of 


166          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

law;  then  they  were  put  into  prison,  little  Jonathan, 
Patience,  and  Fear  Brewster  with  the  rest.  It  was 
probably  a  gloomy  experience,  for  prisons  in  those 
days  were  dark,  damp,  dirty  places  infested  with  rats. 
But  in  the  end  they  were  more  kindly  treated.  They 
were  all  released  and  sent  back  to  Scrooby. 

Then  Mr.  Brewster  and  Mr.  Bradford  had  to  lay 
their  plans  for  a  second  attempt.  They  made  arrange- 
ments with  another  Dutch  shipmaster,  and  this  time 
only  the  men  walked  on  foot  toward  the  coast.  The 
women  and  children  were  sent  in  boats  down  the  river 
to  where  the  ship  awaited  them. 

The  men  reached  the  ship  in  safety  and  some  went 
on  board,  but  the  women  and  children  were  delayed 
on  account  of  the  low  tide,  which  left  their  boats 
stranded  high  and  dry  on  a  mud  flat.  While  they  were 
waiting  for  the  high  tide  to  float  them  out  to  the  ship, 
a  mob  of  people  carrying  guns,  bows,  arrows,  pitch- 
forks, and  clubs  suddenly  rushed  upon  the  beach  fol- 
lowed by  officers  of  the  King.  The  sight  of  this  crowd 
so  frightened  the  ship's  captain  that  he  set  sail  at  once 
without  waiting  for  the  boats,  taking  with  him  the 
men  who  were  on  the  ship. 

The  poor  women  and  children  had  not  only  failed 
for  the  second  time  in  their  escape,  but  they  were  now 
separated  from  some  of  their  men  folk.  The  whole 
group  was  arrested  except  for  a  few  who  ran  away, 
but  the  officers  could  find  no  good  excuse  for  imprison- 
ing them,  so  they  were  released  after  a  few  days.  Plans 
were  again  made  for  their  journey  to  Holland  which 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        167 

were  at  last  successful.  They  reached  Holland  in 
safety,  and  when  all  were  united  again,  the  Puritans 
held  a  meeting,  and  fell  down  on  their  knees  to 
thank  God  for  having  protected  them.  This  was  in 
the  year  1608. 

HOLLAND 

For  twelve  years  the  Puritans  lived  as  a  little  colony 
in  Leyden,  a  pleasant  Dutch  town  with  houses  that 
seemed  to  shine  with  cleanliness.  Canals  wound  in  and 
out  among  the  streets.  Surrounding  the  town  were  flat, 
green,  marshy  fields,  with  big,  towering  windmills  here 
and  there,  and  bright  gardens  of  pink  and  red  and 
yellow  tulips. 

The  Puritans  bought  a  large  house  which  had  a  big 
garden.  This  they  called  the  Great  House,  and  it  was 
their  chief  meeting  place.  Mr.  Robinson,  the  minister, 
lived  in  the  Great  House,  and  many  of  the  others  built 
themselves  little  homes  in  the  garden  behind  it.  Mr. 
Brewster  rented  a  house  in  the  neighborhood  for 
himself  and  his  family.  None  of  the  Puritans  knew  how 
to  speak  Dutch,  so  they  had  great  difficulty  in  earning 
their  living  and  remained  very  poor.  Even  the  little 
children  had  to  go  to  work,  for  there  was  not  enough 
money  to  pay  for  their  schooling.  Soon  their  young 
bodies  were  bent  and  bowed  under  the  burden  of  their 
labor.  However,  they  learned  all  kinds  of  useful  trades. 
Many  of  them  became  weavers.  Mr.  Brewster  found 
that  he  could  make  some  money  by  giving  English  les- 
sons to  young  Dutch  merchants.  After  a  few  years,  he 


168          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

set  up  a  printing  press,  and  printed  such  religious  books 
as  were  forbidden  to  be  printed  in  England.  In  this  age 
those  who  loved  liberty  were  fighting  for  liberty  of 
conscience,  freedom  of  speech,  and  freedom  of  the  press. 

Many  of  the  older  Puritans  never  learned  the  Dutch 
language,  and  though  they  felt  great  friendliness  toward 
the  Dutch,  yet  they  remained  strangers  in  a  strange 
land.  The  struggle  against  poverty  was  very  hard.  As 
they  themselves  have  written,  "they  saw  the  grim  and 
grisly  face  of  Poverty  come  on  them  like  an  armed 
man,  with  whom  they  had  to  buckle  and  encounter, 
and  from  whom  they  could  not  fly."  But  of  all  their 
sorrows,  the  heaviest  to  be  borne  was  their  anxiety 
over  their  children.  Some  of  the  children  were  pinched 
and  overworked,  others  were  slipping  away  from  their 
parents  and  growing  up  into  Dutch  mynheers  and 
vrouws.  Some  became  soldiers,  others  took  long  sea 
voyages.  Some  mixed  with  the  loose  crowd  of  foreign 
sailors  that  filled  the  Dutch  seaports  and  broke  away 
from  family  ties  altogether. 

Therefore,  the  Puritans  were  not  entirely  content  to 
live  in  Holland,  and  so,  when  Mr.  Brewster  and  Mr. 
Bradford  put  forward  the  plan  that  the  whole  colony 
should  migrate  to  America,  they  accepted  it  very 
readily.  They  looked  forward  with  great  happiness  to 
a  new  country,  where  they  could  govern  themselves, 
and  where  their  children  could  develop  healthily  in  a 
pure,  free  atmosphere. 

At  first  the  plan  came  to  nothing,  because  the  Puri- 
tans had  not  enough  money  to  build  a  sailing  vessel 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        169 

and  buy  provisions.  Then  an  English  merchant  named 
Weston  visited  Mr.  Brewster  in  Leyden  and  said: 
"  I  belong  to  a  company  of  merchants  in  London  who 
are  very  desirous  that  this  new  country  of  North 
America  be  settled.  We  believe  that  it  will  in  time 
become  very  valuable  to  England  as  a  colony.  We 
can  help  you  and  lend  you  money.  If  you  and  your 
friends  are  willing  to  take  the  risk  of  being  settlers, 
we  merchant-adventurers  in  London  will  be  willing 
to  risk  our  money  and  pay  for  your  ships  and  pro- 
visions. We  can  arrange  that  the  profits  of  the 
enterprise  be  shared  equally  among  us  all.  The  new 
country  is  rich  in  furs,  and  very  fertile,  so  that  you 
will  soon  be  able  to  trade  with  England  and  make 
great  profits." 

The  Puritans  accepted  this  offer,  and  they  promised 
that  when  they  landed  in  America  they  would  stay  to- 
gether for  seven  years,  and  put  all  the  produce  of  their 
labor  into  a  common  store,  which  should  belong  not 
only  to  them  but  also  to  the  merchants  in  London,  and 
they  promised  that  they  would  in  time  pay  back  the 
money  that  was  loaned  to  them. 

Then  Mr.  Brewster,  Mr.  Bradford,  and  other  leaders 
wrote  to  many  of  their  old  friends  in  England  and  asked 
them  to  join  in  the  enterprise.  About  thirty-five  of 
the  Leyden  Puritans  had  decided  to  make  the  journey, 
and  they  found  that  no  less  than  sixty-five  friends  in 
England  were  willing  to  come  with  them.  It  was 
arranged  that  they  should  all  meet  together  at  the  sea- 
port, Southampton,  in  England. 


170 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


DEPARTURE  OF  THE  PILGRIMS  FROM  DELFTSHAVEN 

A  ship  named  the  Speedwell  was  built  at  the  Dutch 
port,  Delftshaven,  not  far  from  Leyden.  When  the 
Puritans  were  ready  to  depart  in  it  from  Holland  they 
had  a  day  of  solemn  worship  and  thanksgiving.  Mr. 
Robinson,  the  minister,  preached  a  long  sermon. 
Many  were  sorrowful  at  leaving  the  pleasant  city  that 
had  been  their  dwelling  place  for  twelve  years,  and 
they  poured  out  fervent  prayers  mixed  with  floods  of 
tears.  They  were  simple,  soft-hearted  folk.  But,  as 
Mr.  Bradford  wrote  in  his  History,  they  conquered 
their  sadness.  "They  knew  they  were  pilgrims,  and 
logked  not  much  on  these  things,  but  lifted  up  their 
eyes  to  the  heavens,  their  dearest  country." 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        171 

At  Southampton,  the  Pilgrims  found  another  ship 
called  the  Mayflower,  awaiting  them.  They  met  here 
their  friends  from  England  who  were  going  to  sail  to 
America.  Among  these  were  a  Captain  Miles  Standish, 
a  young  man  named  John  Alden,  and  a  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Mullins,  who  had  a  daughter  called  Priscilla.  Other 
Pilgrims  whose  names  are  well  known  were  John 
Carver,  Edward  Winslow,  and  Stephen  Hopkins. 

The  two  ships  sailed  out  together,  but  the  Speedwell 
soon  had  to  turn  back,  because  she  had  sprung  a  leak, 
and  all  her  passengers  and  baggage  were  crowded  onto 
the  Mayflower.  So  the  Mayflower  sailed  out  alone 
across  the  Atlantic.  She  was  a  little  wooden  sailing 
vessel,  only  ninety  feet  long  and  twenty-four  feet  wide. 

For  two  months  the  Pilgrims  were  crowded  uncom- 
fortably together  on  this  little  ship  without  sight  of 
land.  Besides  the  hundred  passengers  and  the  crew, 
we  know  there  were  two  large  dogs  and  one  little  dog. 
Perhaps  there  were  also  some  hens  and  chickens  and 
goats.  The  food  provided  was  very  simple,  consisting 
chiefly  of  dry  biscuits  and  salt  beef  and  smoked  herring. 
Small  wood  fires  were  used  for  cooking,  but  as  fuel  was 
scarce,  the  meals  that  were  given  out  twice  a  day  were 
mostly  cold.  Many  passengers  were  seasick,  and  one 
man  died.  One  little  baby  was  born,  the  son  of  Stephen 
Hopkins,  and  was  christened  Oceanus  Hopkins. 

The  Pilgrims  gave  very  quaint  Christian  names  to 
their  children.  Mr.  Brewster's  two  daughters  were 
named  Patience  and  Fear,  and  he  now  had  two  younger 
sons  named  Love  and  Wrestling.  (Wrestling  was  gen- 


172          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

erally  called  "Wrastle"  Brewster,  for  short.)  Other 
names  were  Resolved  White,  Humility  Cooper,  and 
Remember  Allerton. 

Half  way  across  the  Atlantic,  the  Mayflower  ran 
into  a  heavy  gale.  The  ship  was  tossed  by  rolling 
waves,  the  skies  darkened  and  lowered,  and  there  were 
thunder  and  lightning  and  torrents  of  rain.  In  the 
midst  of  this  storm,  a  big  log  holding  the  mast  of  the 
ship  cracked,  and  the  sailors  thought  the  mast  would 
fall  down.  But  by  making  a  great  effort,  they  were 
able  to  hold  the  log  in  place,  and  secure  it  with  a  long 
iron  screw. 

In  November,  1620,  land  was  sighted,  and  the 
Mayflower,  to  the  great  relief  of  the  passengers,  was 
anchored  in  a  safe  harbor,  near  what  is  now  Cape  Cod, 
in  Massachusetts. 


THE  ARRIVAL  IN  AMERICA 

Having  safely  reached  the  new  country,  the  first  act 
of  the  Pilgrims  was  to  hold  a  meeting  on  shipboard 
and  organize  their  government.  They  decided  to  gov- 
ern themselves  as  a  democracy.  When  the  question 
came  up  as  to  who  was  to  be  governor,  the  matter  was 
put  to  a  vote.  Every  man  in  the  company  had  a  vote, 
and  by  the  vote  of  the  majority,  Mr.  John  Carver  was 
elected  governor.  Then  all  signed  a  paper  by  which 
they  agreed  to  obey  any  laws  that  the  group  might 
make.  By  this  simple  act,  the  Pilgrims  helped  to  lay 
the  foundation  of  American  democracy. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        173 

A  small  party  of  men  under  the  leadership  of  Cap- 
tain Standish  and  Mr.  Bradford  were  sent  ashore  to 
explore  the  coast. 

They  found  a  pleasantly  wooded  country,  with  many 
streams  of  clear,  fresh  water,  which,  after  their  long 
imprisonment  on  shipboard  tasted  as  pleasant  to  them 
as  the  finest  wine  or  beer  would  have  tasted  in  former 
times.  At  one  place  they  saw  some  Indians  and  tried 
to  follow  them;  but  the  Indians  ran  away  as  fast  as 
they  could,  so  that  the  Pilgrims  were  not  able  to  catch 
up  with  them.  They  followed  the  tracks,  and  dis- 
covered a  field  which  had  been  planted  with  corn  that 
year.  Near  this  were  the  remains  of  a  hut  and  several 
heaps  of  sand,  which  looked  as  though  they  had  been 
newly  piled  up.  Digging  into  these,  they  discovered  a 
number  of  baskets  filled  with  corn,  still  fair  and  fresh. 
This  was  to  them  a  very  goodly  sight,  for  though  they 
had  never  seen  Indian  corn  before,  they  were  sure  it 
was  good  for  food. 

By  the  end  of  December,  the  explorers  had  found  a 
place  which  seemed  favorable  for  a  settlement,  so  all 
the  passengers  of  the  Mayflower,  including  the  women 
and  children,  were  landed,  and  the  men  set  to  work  to 
build  a  town.  They  named  it  Plymouth.  First,  with 
great  labor,  they  built  a  big  plank  house,  which  was  to 
be  the  common  storehouse,  for  they  had  promised  to 
share  all  their  goods  in  common.  When  the  storehouse 
was  almost  finished,  a  great  wave  of  sickness  swept 
through  the  colony,  and  all  work  was  interrupted  for 
the  time  being.  The  sickness  was  caused  by  insufficient 


174 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


food  and  exposure  to  the  cold.  Often  the  Pilgrims  had 
nothing  to  eat  in  the  cold  winter  weather  except  clams 
which  they  picked  up  on  the  seashore.  Besides,  they 
were  continually  getting  wet  through,  or  frostbitten, 


THE  LANDING  OF  THE  PILGRIMS 


because  they  had  no  proper  houses  to  shelter  them. 
Most  of  them  had  colds  and  coughs,  and  many  had 
quinsy  and  lung  fever.  In  four  months  nearly  half  of 
them  had  died,  and  at  one  time  only  six  or  seven  were 
well  enough  to  nurse  the  dying  and  bury  the  dead. 

Mr.  Edward  Winslow's  wife  died,  and  also  Captain 
Standish's  wife,  Rose.  Mr.  Mullins,  his  wife,  his  son, 
and  his  servant  all  died,  and  only  the  daughter,  Pris- 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        175 

cilia,  survived,  who  was  later  to  marry  John  Alden. 
There  were  a  great  many  children  among  the  Pilgrims 
and  they  were  better  able  to  withstand  the  epidemic 
of  sickness  than  the  old  people.  The  men  who  worked 
hardest  for  the  colony  during  these  first  trying  months 
were  Mr.  Bradford,  Mr.  Brewster,  Governor  Carver, 
Captain  Standish,  Edward  Winslow,  John  Alden,  Ste- 
phen Hopkins,  John  Howland,  John  and  Edward  Til- 
ley,  Arthur  Warren,  and  Edward  Dotte. 

The  new  country  was  a  wild  and  savage  place  in  the 
winter.  It  was  overgrown  with  woods  and  thickets  and 
bushes  and  tangles,  and  the  bare  trees  had  a  dreary, 
weather-beaten  aspect,  from  being  exposed  to  ice  storms 
and  the  lashing  of  great  gales  from  the  Atlantic. 

But  when  the  spring  came,  bringing  with  it  green 
grass,  and  warm  fine  days,  and  little  song  birds  from 
the  south,  which  chirped  and  trilled  most  pleasantly  in 
the  leafy  trees,  the  condition  of  the  distressed  Pilgrims 
became  happier. 

THE  INDIANS 

So  far  they  had  seen  nothing  more  of  the  Indians, 
and  felt  very  curious  about  them.  But  one  fine,  warm 
day  in  the  spring,  they  were  amazed  to  see  an  Indian 
walk  right  up  to  the  storehouse,  apparently  without 
fear,  and  they  were  still  more  amazed  to  hear  him  call 
out  "  Welcome  "  in  English.  He  was  a  tall  straight  man, 
with  very  long  black  hair,  and  he  carried  a  bow  and 
two  arrows.  He  was  most  friendly.  He  said  that  his 
name  was  Samoset,  and  that  he  had  learned  a  little 


176          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

English  from  some  English  sailors  who  had  come  to 
fish  in  his  country.  He  talked  for  many  hours  with 
the  Pilgrims,  and  when  it  grew  dark,  they  would  have 
been  glad  to  get  rid  of  him,  but  he  wished  to  remain 
for  the  night,  so  they  gave  him  a  lodging.  But  several 
men  watched  him  carefully  all  night  long. 

The  next  morning  he  went  away,  but  soon  came  back 
with  five  other  Indians,  all  tall,  fine  men,  wearing  deer- 
skins and  feathers  stuck  in  their  black  hair.  One  of 
them  had  a  foxtail  tied  to  his  head.  They  began  to  sing 
and  dance  a  war  dance,  but  the  Pilgrims  dismissed  them 
as  soon  as  possible,  because  it  was  Sunday,  and  their 
strict  principles  did  not  permit  of  dancing  on  Sundays. 

A  few  days  later  Samoset  appeared  again  in  Ply- 
mouth with  another  Indian  whose  name  was  Squanto. 
Squanto  spoke  English  very  well  indeed,  for  he  had 
actually  been  taken  to  England  by  a  sea  captain,  and 
had  lived  in  London  for  some  time.  He  stayed  among 
the  Pilgrims  and  became  a  valuable  friend  to  them. 
It  is  doubtful  whether  they  would  have  survived  the 
first  year  if  it  had  not  been  for  Squanto.  Later  in  the 
spring  he  taught  them  how  to  plant  Indian  corn,  and 
by  so  doing  he  provided  them  with  their  principal  food. 
But  his  first  mission  was  to  act  as  a  friendly  interpreter 
between  the  English  and  the  Indian  tribes  of  the 
neighborhood.  He  brought  the  news  that  a  great  chief 
named  Massasoit  was  coming  to  visit  the  colonists  and 
was  willing  to  make  a  treaty  of  peace  with  them. 

When  Massasoit  arrived  in  view  on  one  of  the  hills 
overlooking  Plymouth,  followed  by  a  band  of  sixty 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS         177 

Indian  braves,  the  Pilgrims  shot  a  loud  volley  of  blank 
cartridges  into  the  air,  as  a  salute.  The  Indians  were 
shy,  and  at  first  would  not  venture  down  into  the  valley. 
Then  Mr.  Edward  Winslow  offered  himself  as  a  hostage, 
and  walked  up  to  them,  after  which  Massasoit  and 
twenty  of  his  followers  marched  down  the  hill  and 
were  escorted  into  one  of  the  half-finished  houses  of 
the  colony,  hastily  decorated  for  the  occasion  with  a 
green  rug  and  four  cushions. 

There,  with  the  help  of  Squanto,  as  interpreter,  a 
solemn  treaty  of  peace  was  made.  The  Indians  and  the 
English  agreed  not  to  injure  each  other,  there  was  to 
be  no  stealing  and  no  warfare  between  them,  and  if 
any  trouble  came  to  them  from  the  outside,  they  were 
to  help  each  other  as  allies.  When  this  treaty  was  con- 
cluded, Governor  Carver  kissed  Massasoit's  hand,  and 
Massasoit  kissed  Governor  Carver's  hand,  so  that  no 
courtesy  was  withheld.  After  this,  the  Sachem  returned 
to  his  own  village.  He  was  a  big  strong  man,  grave 
of  countenance  and  spare  of  speech.  His  clothing 
differed  very  little  from  that  of  his  followers,  except 
that  he  wore  a  chain  of  white  bones  around  his  neck. 
His  face  was  painted  a  dull  mulberry  red,  and  both  his 
hair  and  face  were  carefully  oiled,  so  that  he  looked 
very  greasy. 

In  the  months  that  followed,  the  Pilgrims  were  busy 
planting  their  corn  and  building  their  houses.  Squanto 
taught  them  to  plant  corn  in  this  fashion:  First  he 
took  a  stick  and  made  a  hole  in  the  ground  a  few  inches 
deep,  then  he  dropped  a  fish  into  the  hole  and  kicked 


178 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


a  little  dirt  over  it,  then  he  dropped  in  the  corn  seed 
and  filled  up  the  hole  with  some  more  earth. 

The  houses  of  the   Pilgrims  were  built  along  two 
main  streets,  close  to  the  common  storehouse.    Each 

family  had  its 
own  house,  and 
some  took  in  un- 
married men  and 
boys  as  lodgers. 
For  instance, 
Captain  Miles 
Standish  and 
John  Alden  lived 
together  in  one 
house,  until  the 
time  came  when 
John  Alden  mar- 
ried  Priscilla 
Mullins. 

Though  they 
had  their  own 
homes,  the  Pil- 
grims did  not 
have  their  own 
cornfields  at  this  time.  They  all  worked  together  in 
common  fields,  and  their  harvest  was  garnered  in  the 
common  storehouse,  and  then  equally  distributed 
among  them  all.  Likewise  any  turkeys  shot  in  the 
woods,  or  fish  caught  in  the  sea  were  brought  to  the 
common  storehouse. 


JOHN  ALDEN  AND  PRISCILLA 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        179 

During  the  heat  of  the  summer,  Mr.  Carver,  the  gov- 
ernor, died  of  a  sunstroke.  One  blazing  hot  day  when 
he  had  been  working  out  in  the  fields  with  the  rest,  he 
came  in  feeling  very  sick.  He  complained  greatly  of 
his  head,  and  within  a  few  hours  his  senses  failed  and  he 
spoke  no  more. 

A  meeting  of  the  whole  colony  was  held,  and  Mr. 
William  Bradford  was  elected  by  vote  to  be  the  new 
governor.  He  was  a  fine,  strong  man  who  had  prob- 
ably done  more  than  anyone  else  to  help  the  sick  during 
the  winter  epidemic. 

Shortly  after  this,  in  June  or  July,  Squanto  informed 
the  Pilgrims  that  the  Indians  were  expecting  them  to 
return  the  visit  paid  by  Massasoit.  Accordingly,  the 
Governor  appointed  Edward  Winslow  and  Stephen 
Hopkins  to  undertake  this  adventure.  Accompanied 
by  Squanto,  these  men  started  off  on  their  two 
days'  journey,  carrying  with  them  a  red  coat  trimmed 
with  lace,  a  copper  chain,  and  various  other  small 
presents  which  they  were  to  give  to  Massasoit.  They 
also  carried  firearms  for  their  own  protection. 

Following  a  rude  trail  through  the  woods,  they 
passed  through  a  number  of  small  Indian  settlements 
until  they  arrived,  one  Wednesday  morning,  in  the 
little  village  where  Massasoit  lived.  This  they  found 
to  be  made  up  of  a  few  poor  huts  built  of  skin  and  bark. 
As  a  salute  to  the  Sachem,  they  fired  a  volley  of  blank 
cartridges  into  the  air,  which  startled  the  Indian 
squaws  and  papooses,  and  made  them  very  much 
alarmed.  But  Massasoit  himself  was  not  frightened. 


180          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

He  welcomed  the  three  messengers  very  kindly  and 
took  them  into  his  hut.  There  Mr.  Winslow  delivered 
the  presents.  Massasoit  at  once  put  on  the  red  coat 
and  the  copper  chain,  and  was  not  a  little  proud  of 
them.  He  walked  around  among  all  his  men  that  they 
might  see  him  so  grandly  dressed. 

In  answer  to  Mr.  Winslow' s  message,  he  said  to  them 
in  a  friendly  manner:  "I  will  gladly  continue  peace 
and  friendship  with  the  English,  and  I  will  also  help 
you  with  corn  for  seed,  according  to  your  request." 
Then  he  lit  a  pipe  of  tobacco,  and  with  Squanto  as  an 
interpreter,  he  fell  to  discoursing  on  many  subjects. 

The  hours  passed,  and  it  grew  dark,  and  late,  but  no 
food  was  offered  to  the  travelers.  This,  they  discovered, 
was  because  the  Indians  themselves  had  nothing  to  eat. 
It  happened  that  their  hunting  for  the  last  few  days 
had  been  unsuccessful.  In  the  evening  a  fire  was  lit  in 
the  Sachem's  hut,  and  a  number  of  Indians  came 
in  and  crouched  around  it,  sitting  on  their  heels 
and  smoking  their  pipes.  Then  Massasoit  stood  up  and 
made  a  speech.  He  said,  looking  at  Mr.  Winslow  and 
Mr.  Hopkins,  "You  are  welcome  here,  and  I  will  keep 
the  treaty.  But  I  am  a  very  great  chief."  Then  he 
turned  to  the  Indians  and  asked,  "Am  I  not  ruler  of 
this  country?" 

All  the  Indians  grunted  together  and  agreed  that  he 
was. 

"And  am  I  not  then  ruler  of  this  town?" 

All  the  Indians  grunted  again,  and  said  that  he  was, 
indeed. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS 


181 


Then  Massasoit  marched  up  and  down  his  hut  and 
repeated  the  same  question  about  thirty  or  forty  times, 
in  order  to  make  it  quite  clear. 

After  this  long  speech,  the  Pilgrims  asked  if  they 
might  go  to  rest,  and  Massasoit  offered  them  his  own 
bed,  which  was  made  of  planks  a  foot  from  the  ground, 
covered  with  a  thin  mat.  Mr.  Winslow  and  Mr.  Hop- 


SQUANTO  AND  THE  PILGRIMS 


kins  and  Squanto  lay  down  at  one  end,  and  Massasoit 
and  his  squaw  lay  at  the  other.  By  and  by  two  more 
Indian  chiefs  pressed  in  as  well,  and  what  with  the 
number  of  bedfellows,  and  the  mosquitoes,  and  the 
hard  planks,  the  Pilgrims  were  more  weary  after  their 
night's  rest  than  they  had  been  at  the  end  of  their  long 
journey  on  foot. 

The  next  morning  Massasoit  went  out  and  caught 
two  big  fish,  but  as  at  least  forty  Indians  looked  for  a 
share  in  them,  the  Pilgrims  did  not  have  a  very  hearty 


182          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

meal.  It  was  the  first  they  had  eaten  in  two  nights  and 
a  day.  On  Friday  morning,  before  sunrise,  they  took 
their  departure,  and  Massasoit,  as  he  bade  them  fare- 
well, said  that  he  was  both  sorry  and  ashamed  that  he 
had  not  been  able  to  entertain  them  better. 

In  the  autumn  of  the  first  year,  the  Pilgrims  har- 
vested the  crop  of  corn  which  they  had  planted  with 
the  aid  of  Squanto.  They  were  now  far  more  comfort- 
able than  they  had  been  at  first,  for  they  had  food  and 
shelter.  They  had  built  about  seven  or  eight  plank 
houses,  covered  with  thatch.  Their  windows  were 
made  of  oiled  paper,  and  their  furniture  was  rough 
wooden  furniture  which  they  had  made  themselves, 
but  they  had  some  pewter  dishes  and  iron  kettles  which 
they  had  brought  with  them  from  England. 

To  celebrate  their  first  good  harvest  in  November, 
they  decided  to  hold  a  day  of  Thanksgiving.  The  men 
went  out  and  shot  some  wild  turkeys  in  the  woods;  then 
they  all  met  together  and  had  a  plentiful  dinner  of 
roast  turkey  and  corn  bread.  This  was  the  first  Thanks- 
giving Day,  and  it  is  in  memory  of  this  dinner  that 
we  still  eat  turkey  at  Thanksgiving  every  year. 

The  Pilgrims  now  had  a  supply  of  corn  stored  up  in 
the  common  storehouse,  and  they  might  have  lived 
comfortably  until  the  next  harvest.  But  a  few  days 
after  Thanksgiving,  a  ship  came  unexpectedly  from 
England  bringing  thirty-five  new  colonists,  poor  men 
who  were  utterly  unprovided  with  food,  and  had  no 
other  clothing  except  what  they  wore  on  their  backs. 
Following  their  principles,  the  Pilgrims  held  a  meeting 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS         183 

and  decided  to  share  their  corn  with  the  newcomers, 
although  they  knew  this  would  mean  great  privation. 
It  was  too  late  in  the  season  to  increase  the  provisions, 
and  the  number  of  mouths  to  be  fed  had  doubled. 

Before  the  winter  was  over,  there  was  no  more  corn 
left.  The  settlers  were  forced  to  live  on  clams  and 
oysters  picked  up  on  the  beach,  and  the  long  contin- 
uance of  this  diet  made  their  faces  look  very  pale.  In 
the  spring,  fresh  boatloads  of  immigrants  arrived  from 
England,  and  by  May  and  June  the  people  of  Ply- 
mouth were  almost  starving.  The  sea  and  the  creeks 
were  full  of  fish,  but  there  was  a  lack  of  proper  fishing 
nets  and  tackle.  The  newcomers  were  not  so  kind  and 
charitable  as  the  Pilgrims  of  the  Mayflower  and  they 
caused  much  trouble.  In  the  summer,  when  the  corn 
was  ripening,  some  of  them  trampled  down  the  fields 
and  stole  the  ears,  being  impelled  by  hunger  and  dis- 
satisfied with  their  allotted  share  of  food.  Another  dis- 
turbance at  this  time  was  caused  by  two  servants 
belonging  to  Mr.  Stephen  Hopkins.  These  men  fool- 
ishly tried  to  settle  a  quarrel  by  fighting  a  duel  with 
swords,  but  they  were  separated,  and  Governor  Brad- 
ford called  a  general  meeting  of  the  whole  community, 
to  act  as  a  court.  The  two  men  were  tried,  and  it  was 
decided  by  the  vote  of  the  majority  that  they  should 
be  tied  neck  and  heels  together  for  twenty-four  hours, 
with  nothing  to  eat  or  drink. 

But  after  the  offenders  had  been  tied  together  for 
the  space  of  one  hour,  they  declared  that  they  were 
now  friends,  and  they  promised  earnestly  to  behave 


184          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

themselves,  so  Governor   Bradford  ordered   their  re- 
lease.    The  Pilgrims  were  kind-hearted  judges. 

You  will  see  by  this  story  that  the  government  of 
Plymouth  was  at  first  very  much  like  that  of  the 
Athenians.  It  was  a  direct  democracy.  The  colony 
was  still  so  small  that  all  the  men  could  gather  together 
in  one  big  meeting.  They  did  not  have  to  vote  for 
representatives,  like  the  people  of  England.  They 
themselves  voted  on  all  the  questions  that  came  up. 
This  lawsuit  between  the  two  servants  was  decided  by 
a  vote  of  all  the  citizens,  that  is  to  say,  by  the  vote  of 
the  men,  for  no  one  dreamed  at  this  time  that  women 
might  have  votes. 

THE  PILGRIMS  GIVE  UP  COMMUNISM 

For  several  months,  the  Pilgrims  were  beset  with 
difficulties  and  suffered  from  sickness  and  weakness  on 
account  of  the  lack  of  food.  Then,  in  the  spring  of 
1623,  the  third  year  of  their  settlement,  they  changed 
their  method  of  work,  and  their  prospects  began  to 
look  much  brighter. 

They  wished  to  plant  a  much  bigger  acreage  of  corn, 
and  it  was  necessary  that  everyone  should  work  his 
hardest.  The  common  fields,  where  all  had  worked 
together,  had  not  proved  a  success.  Some  of  the  col- 
onists were  very  industrious  and  some  were  lazy.  Those 
who  were  industrious  did  not  like  to  see  the  fruit  of 
their  hard  work  being  enjoyed  and  wasted  by  the  lazy. 
So  Governor  Bradford  called  a  meeting  and  suggested 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        185 

that  from  now  on  each  family  should  have  its  own  corn- 
field and  enjoy  the  use  of  its  own  harvest.  He  thought 
this  would  make  all  hands  more  industrious. 

The  people  agreed  with  him,  for  there  had  been 
a  great  deal  of  jealousy  and  quarrelling  under  the 
old  plan  of  communism.  Accordingly  a  separate  corn- 
field was  allotted  to  each  family,  and  the  results  were 
very  good.  Far  more  corn  was  planted  than  other- 
wise would  have  been,  and  the  new  plan  gave  far 
greater  contentment  than  had  existed  before.  Even 
the  women  now  went  willingly  into  the  fields,  taking 
their  little  ones  with  them  to  help  plant  the  corn. 
If  the  women  had  been  forced  to  work  in  the  common 
fields,  they  would  have  thought  it  an  act  of  great 
tyranny  and  oppression. 

Experience  had  proved  to  the  Pilgrims  that  commu- 
nism is  not  practical  and  efficient.  From  now  on,  no 
further  attempt  was  made  to  work  in  common  corn- 
fields. Yet  it  must  not  be  thought  that  the  Pilgrims 
gave  up  communism  entirely,  for  later  when  they  had 
herds  of  sheep  and  cattle,  these  were  pastured  on  com- 
mon fields  and  guarded  by  a  village  cowherd,  as  were 
the  cattle  of  the  English  country  folk  in  the  Middle 
Ages.  The  common  pastures  of  New  England  were 
kept  up  for  more  than  a  hundred  years,  and  it  is  be- 
lieved that  they  fostered  a  good  spirit  of  helpfulness 
and  democracy  among  the  New  Englanders.  In  many 
New  England  villages  you  will  find  in  the  center  of 
the  town  to  this  day,  a  park  or  a  large  open  space— 
the  remnant  of  the  old  "  common. " 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        187 

After  the  people  of  Plymouth  had  harvested  their 
third  and  biggest  crop  of  corn,  they  grew  more 
and  more  prosperous  and  felt  firmly  established  in 
the  new  country.  Now  there  was  no  more  danger 
of  starvation.  Seeds  were  procured  from  England 
and  large  vegetable  gardens  and  fruit  orchards  were 
planted  as  well  as  cornfields;  cattle  and  sheep  were 
brought  across  the  ocean  and  these  provided  a  sup- 
ply of  meat,  butter,  and  milk.  By  trading  with  the 
Indians,  the  colonists  were  soon  able  to  send  back 
to  England  valuable  cargoes  of  beaver  skins,  and 
the  fishing  trade  was  considerable.  In  1624  there 
were  fifty  English  fishing  vessels  on  the  coast  of 
New  England. 

The  story  of  their  brave  struggle  is  ended.  The  Pil- 
grims of  the  Mayflower  had  stood  every  test.  They  had 
been  willing  to  sacrifice  themselves  for  an  ideal.  They 
had  been  kind  and  charitable  to  each  other  through 
sickness  and  starvation,  and  there  was  not  a  selfish, 
over-ambitious  man  amongst  them.  They  were  patient 
workers,  they  were  tender-hearted  judges,  and  brave 
soldiers.  It  is  because  they  were  such  good,  simple, 
faithful  men  that  their  story  has  always  been  an  inspira- 
tion and  an  ideal  to  all  Americans.  The  government 
they  founded  was  a  pure  democracy. 

From  that  time,  the  New  England  colony  grew  and 
grew  rapidly  until  it  had  thousands  of  inhabitants.  In 
1628,  a  new  company  of  Puritans  settled  in  New  England 
and  founded  the  town  of  Boston.  Later  the  Pilgrims  of 


188  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Plymouth  joined  with  this  new  company,  and  formed 
together  one  colony,  the  province  of  Massachusetts. 

A  great  'many  new  towns  were  built.  Such  numbers  of 
immigrants  landed,  that  a  town  would  soon  become  like 
a  beehive  overstocked  with  bees.  Part  of  the  inhabitants 
would  want  to  "swarm,"  and  move  into  new  settlements 
spreading  further  and  further  into  the  backwoods.  Soon 
the  whole  of  Massachusetts  was  dotted  over  with  little  vil- 
lages and  towns  that  the  Puritans  called  "  infant  colonies" 

The  central  government  of  the  whole  of  Massachusetts 
was  carried  on  in  Boston,  the  largest  town,  by  a  governor, 
and  an  assembly  called  the  General  Court.  There  were 
now  many  little  towns  and  villages  a  whole  day's  journey 
away  from  Boston,  and  it  was  impossible  for  all  the 
country  folk  to  make  the  journey  to  the  General  Court  four 
times  a  year.  Accordingly  every  town  held  a  Town  Meet- 
ing at  which  the  people  elected  a  representative  to  sit  in 
the  General  Court  at  Boston.  These  representatives  passed 
laws  affecting  the  whole  of  Massachusetts.  Thus  the  cen- 
tral government  of  Massachusetts  became  a  representa- 
tive government. 

Although  the  people  of  Massachusetts  and  New  England 
managed  their  own  affairs,  they  still  remained  the  subjects 
of  the  King  of  England;  for  New  England,  like  other  settle- 
ments of  Englishmen  to  the  south,  was  an  English  colony. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  The  Pilgrim  Fathers  struggled  for 
liberty  of  conscience,  freedom  of  speech,  and  freedom  of  the  press. 
They  left  England  and  migrated  to  America  for  the  sake  of  re- 
ligious and  democratic  ideals. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS        189 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Describe  the  customs  of  the  Puritans. 

2.  Who  were  the  "Separatists"?    Why  were  they  called  by 
that  name? 

3.  Why  did  the  Puritans  (Separatists)  leave  England? 

4.  What  is  the  meaning  of  "liberty  of  conscience,"  "freedom 
of  the  press,"  "freedom  of  speech"? 

5.  How  did  Mr.  Brewster  earn  a  living  in  Holland? 

6.  Describe  the  voyage  of  the  Mayflower. 

7.  How  did  the  Pilgrims  organize  their  government  on  board 
the  Mayflower? 

8.  In  what  ways  was  Squanto  useful  to  the  Pilgrims? 

9.  Describe  the  trial  of  Mr.  Hopkins's  servants,  and  its  results. 

10.  How  is  government  carried  on  in  a  "direct"  democracy? 

11.  What  were  the  results  of  communism  in  the  Plymouth 
Colony  ? 

12.  Describe  the  character  of  the  Pilgrims. 

13.  Explain  why  the  government  of  Massachusetts  became  a 
"representative"  democracy  instead  of  a  "direct"  democracy. 


CHAPTER  IX 
THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION 

1.  A  NEW  ENGLAND  VILLAGE  IN  1775 

2.  THE  FIRST  YEARS  OF  THE  REVOLUTIONARY  WAR 

3.  A  STAGECOACH  JOURNEY 

4.  THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN 

5.  THE  NORTHWEST  TERRITORY 

6.  THE  FEDERAL  CONSTITUTION 

The  story  of  Jonathan  Hale  is  the  story  of  a  plain  New 
England  boy  who  fought  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  and 
afterwards  took  up  a  plot  of  land  in  the  Northwest  Territory. 
Thousands  of  other  American  farmers  ^  like  him  were 
moving  westward  at  this  time,  when  all  the  land  beyond  the 
Allegheny  River  was  still  a  wilderness  of  forest,  swamps, 
and  prairie.  Together  with  the  famous  men  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, these  pioneer  farmers  were  the  builders  of  the  nation. 

A  NEW  ENGLAND  VILLAGE  IN  1775 

Jonathan  Hale  was  born  near  Warrenton/  Massachu- 
setts, in  the  year  1764.  When  Jonathan  was  only  ten 
years  old,  his  father,  Samuel  Hale,  died,  leaving  a  wife 
and  three  children  with  no  other  property  but  the  house 
in  which  they  lived  and  the  farm  land  surrounding  it. 

1  The  character  of  Jonathan  Hale,  and  the  following  descriptions  of 
life  in  a  New  England  village  are  based  on  the  diary  of  John  Adams. 

190 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       191 

Jonathan  was  a  tall  boy,  big-boned  and  thin.  He 
had  to  work  very  hard  on  the  farm.  The  school  in 
Warrenton,  supported  by  the  town  government,  was 
called  a  "moving  school,"  which  meant  that  the  mas- 
ter moved  from  one  town  to  another,  so  that  Jonathan 
and  his  brother  went  to  school  only  three  days  in  the 
week.  On  the  other  days  they  were  busy  digging 
up  stones  from  the  farm  land,  for  the  soil  around  War- 
renton was  very  stony,  or  tending  to  the  cattle,  or 
ploughing  acre  after  acre  of  land.  Even  on  the  days 
when  they  went  to  school  they  had  to  rise  very  early 
to  do  chores. 

One  April  morning,  in  the  year  1775,  Jonathan  came 
in  to  breakfast  red-cheeked  and  hungry,  for  he  had 
driven  the  cattle  over  a  mile  to  water  through  a  cold 
wind.  He  found  his  mother,  his  younger  brother 
Samuel,  and  his  little  sister  Abigail,  who  was  called 
"Nabby,"  sitting  around  the  kitchen  table. 

"Here  is  your  hasty  pudding,  Jonathan,"  said  Mrs. 
Hale,  handing  him  an  earthenware  bowl  and  a  pewter 
spoon.  "You  and  Samuel  must  remember  to  come 
home  as  soon  as  school  is  over,  because  we  are  invited 
to  sup  with  Deacon  Wibird  and  his  lady  this  evening. 
They  have  their  little  Quaker  niece,  Rachel  Wibird, 
from  Philadelphia  visiting  them.  Besides,  Deacon 
Wibird  tells  me  that  he  has  a  copy  of  the  Boston 
Packet  which  he  wishes  me  to  read." 

In  those  days  there  were  no  daily  newspapers,  but 
the  larger  towns  were  beginning  to  publish  small  weekly 
newspapers. 


192          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


A  COLONIAL  KITCHEN 

When  they  had  finished  their  hasty  pudding,  Jona- 
than and  Samuel  set  off  to  school.  As  they  walked  past 
the  Warrenton  Common,  they  noticed  a  young  tree 
that  had  been  newly  planted.  It  was  a  likely  young 
button  tree,  and  it  had  on  it  this  inscription: 

The  Tree  of  Liberty 

and  Cursed  is  He 

who  Cuts  this  Tree 

"I'll  warrant  that  has  been  planted  by  the  Sons  of 
Liberty,"  said  Jonathan.  "The  feeling  runs  very  high 
against  the  British." 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       193 

In  the  school  that  Jonathan  and  Samuel  attended, 
they  were  taught  reading,  writing,  arithmetic,  and  Latin, 
but  no  science  of  any  kind.  This  morning  Jonathan 
was  called  upon  to  read  from  a  book  of  fables  which 
was  the  most  popular  children's  book  of  the  day.  This 
is  the  story  he  read,  very  slowly  and  in  a  loud  voice  : 

THE  BOY  WHO  STOLE  THE  APPLES 

An  old  man  found  a  rude  boy  upon  one  of  his  trees  stealing 
apples  and  desired  him  to  come  down,  but  the  young  saucebox 
told  him  plainly  he  would  not.  "Won't  you?"  said  the  old  man, 
"then  I'll  fetch  you  down,"  so  he  pulled  up  some  tufts  of  grass  and 
threw  them  at  him,  but  this  only  made  the  youngster  laugh,  to 
think  the  old  man  would  pretend  to  beat  him  down  from  the  tree 
with  grass  only.  "Well,  well,"  said  the  old  man,  "if  neither  words 
nor  grass  will  do,  I  must  try  what  virtue  there  is  in  stones."  So 
the  old  man  pelted  him  heartily  with  stones,  which  soon  made 
the  young  chap  hasten  down  from  the  tree  and  beg  the  old 
man's  pardon. 

MORAL:  If  good  words  and  gentle  means  will  not  reclaim  the 
wicked,  they  must  be  dealt  with  in  a  more  severe  manner. 

At  twelve  o'clock  Jonathan  and  Samuel  came  out  of 
school.  As  they  were  walking  toward  the  Common  to 
watch  the  minutemen  being  drilled  by  Major  Westcott, 
the  head  of  the  Warrenton  militia,  they  saw  a  horseman 
gallop  down  the  main  street  of  Warrenton,  and  heard 
him  shout, 

" Alarum!  Alarum!  Turn  out,  minutemen!  Turn 
out!" 

He  was  riding  at  full  speed  and  spurring  his  horse. 
When  he  reached  the  Common,  he  drew  in  his  reins 


194          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

sharply  and  thrust  a  sealed  packet  into  the  Major's 
hands.  Then  he  was  off  again.  Major  Westcott  broke 
the  seal  and  read  aloud: 

"April  19,  1775. 

"To  All  Friends  of  American  Liberty:  Be  it  known  that  this 
morning  before  break  of  day  a  brigade  of  the  British  Army 
marched  to  Lexington,  where  they  found  a  company  of  colony 
militia  in  arms,  upon  whom  they  fired,  killing  six  men  and  wound- 
ing four  others.  The  bearer  of  this  letter  is  charged  to  alarm  the 
country  as  far  as  Connecticut.  All  persons  are  desired  to  supply 
him  with  fresh  horses  as  they  may  be  needed.  I  have  spoken  with 
several  who  have  seen  the  dead  and  the  wounded. 

J.  Palmer, 
One  of  the  Committee  of  Safety." 

Soon  the  boys  heard  the  cracking  of  firearms  to  warn 
and  summon  all  the  able-bodied  men-  of  Warrenton. 
The  minutemen  who  were  working  in  their  fields  went 
into  their  houses  and  began  to  take  down  their  guns, 
their  powderhorns,  and  their  bullet  pouches.  The  news 
spread  quickly  through  the  town  and  a  great  many  of 
the  townsfolk  collected  on  the  Common  waiting  for 
further  news.  Then  the  long  roll  of  the  drums  was 
heard,  and  the  men  came  running  toward  the  Common 
with  their  guns  in  their  hands,  and  their  knapsacks  on 
their  backs.  In  a  very  short  time  they  were  mustered. 
They  kissed  their  wives  and  children  good-by,  and 
marched  off  in  the  direction  of  Boston. 

When  Jonathan  and  Samuel  came  home,  they  found 
their  mother  looking  very  grave,  and  she  said,  "God 
grant  us  wisdom  and  courage.  We  know  not  whether 
we  have  men  fit  for  the  times.  I  feel  great  anxiety." 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       195 

Then  she  reminded  them,  "Mrs.  Wibird  will  be 
expecting  us  now.  Run,  Nabby,  and  put  on  the  little 
dress  that  you  wear  on  the  Lord's  Day,  and  you  boys 
should  put  on  your  best  clothes,  too." 


THE  BATTLE  OF  LEXINGTON 

This  picture  was  drawn  by  two  men  who  took  part  in  the  battle. 

So  Jonathan  and  Samuel  put  on  their  Sunday  suits 
which  were  made  of  rough,  grey  homespun  woven  by 
their  mother.  They  wore  short  breeches,  knitted  woolen 
stockings,  low  shoes,  and  three-cornered  hats.  Little 
Nabby  put  on  a  muslin  frock  with  a  handkerchief  folded 
around  the  neck,  a  bib  apron,  a  Leghorn  hat,  and 
a  long  blue  cloak.  Deacon  Wibird's  farm  was  some 


196          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

distance  away,  so  the  horses  were  brought  out  and 
saddled  with  pillions.  Nabby  was  perched  up  in  front 
of  her  mother  on  one  horse,  and  the  two  boys  straddled 
the  other. 

It  was  a  quiet  evening;  the  wind  had  turned,  and  the 
air  was  mild.  The  little  farmhouses  and  fields  of 
Warrenton  looked  so  peaceful  and  undisturbed  that  it 
was  hard  to  realize  that  fighting  had  been  going  on  in 
New  England  on  that  day. 

Soon  they  reached  the  Wibird  farm,  which  was  large 
and  well  cultivated.  There  were  very  few  rich  or  really 
poor  people  living  in  or  near  Warrenton,  for  most  of 
the  folk  were  small  farmers.  But  Deacon  Wibird  had 
inherited  some  property  and  was  counted  a  wealthy 
man.  Jonathan  and  Samuel  knew  they  could  be  sure  of 
a  very  hearty  and  inviting  meal  whenever  they  went 
to  sup  with  him. 

They  found  Mrs.  Wibird  awaiting  them  in  the  dining 
room — a  big,  handsome,  comfortable  room.  The  walls 
were  panelled  with  wild  cherry  wood,  and  the  stone 
floor  had  been  freshly  scoured  and  sanded.  A  wood 
fire  was  burning  in  the  open  fireplace,  and  the  gleams 
of  the  curling  blue  flames  were  reflected  in  the  shining 
silver  plate  set  out  on  the  sideboard.  In  the  middle  of 
the  room  stood  a  polished  mahogany  table  laden  with 
cut  glass  and  delftware  and  groaning  with  food. 

After  Mrs.  Hale  had  remarked  in  a  polite  tone  that  a 
fire  in  the  evening  was  still  very  pleasant,  although  the 
weather  was  so  springlike,  she  asked  if  she  might  look 
at  the  Boston  Packet,  for  her  thoughts  were  filled  with 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       197 

anxiety  over  the  fighting  at  Lexington  and  she  sought 
for  details  leading  up  to  it.  While  she  was  sitting  by 
the  fire  reading  the  paper,  Mrs.  Wibird  remembered  to 
call  for  her  niece  Rachel. 

The  children  had  noticed  the  little  girl  standing 
shyly  in  the  half  light  of  the  doorway,  afraid  to  come 
in.  Now,  when  called,  she  came  and  answered  their 
greetings  in  a  low  voice;  but  she  was  too  shy  to  say 
very  much.  She  was  dressed  in  grey,  as  she  belonged 
to  a  Quaker  family. 

As  soon  as  Deacon  Wibird  appeared,  they  all  sat  down 
to  supper.  The  little  girl  served  them,  and  she  was  as 
helpful  as  she  was  shy.  In  those  days  good  food  was 
very  plentiful  and  cheap.  First  there  was  roast  wild 
turkey  with  cranberry  sauce  and  a  number  of  vege- 
tables, then  salt  pork  and  cabbage,  and  a  noble  suet 
pudding,  washed  down  with  grog  and  a  glass  of  port. 
After  this,  was  to  come  whipped  sillabub  for  dessert 
and  a  fancy  pudding  called  "floating  island." 

"Little  Rachel  helped  me  to  make  a  most  elegant 
floating  island  from  a  recipe  of  her  mother's,"  said 
Mrs.  Wibird.  ' These  quiet  Philadelphia  Friends,  with 
their  thee's  and  thou's  and  their  grey  clothes,  surely 
know  how  to  keep  a  good  table." 

All  through  the  dinner,  the  talk  was  of  the  day's 
battle,  and  it  was  earnest  and  serious,  for  all  knew  that 
the  colonists,  if  they  went  to  war  against  England, 
would  have  heavy  odds  against  them. 

"But  our  minutemen  will  fight  hard,"  said  Deacon 
Wibird.  "Now,  my  dear  Mrs.  Hale,  I  beg  you,  let  me 


198          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

propose  your  venturing  on  some  of  this  turkey."  Then 
the  old  gentleman  spoke  at  great  length  on  the  causes 
of  discontent,  while  the  ladies  and  the  children  listened 
in  respectful  silence.  "In  the  old  days,  England 
allowed  us  colonists  to  do  pretty  much  as  we  pleased. 
But  now  she  is  trying  to  make  us  do  as  she  pleases. 
She  is  stopping  us  from  trading  with  some  of  the  coun- 
tries from  which  we  get  the  biggest  profits.  Then  she 
has  put  a  tax  on  tea  just  to  annoy  us  and  to  show  that 
she  has  the  power  to  tax  us.  Our  answer  to  that  was 
the  Boston  Tea  Party,  when  a  year  and  a  half  ago,  the 
Sons  of  Liberty,  dressed  up  as  Indians,  rushed  to  the 
docks  in  Boston,  boarded  the  tea  vessels,  and  threw 
all  the  tea  overboard.  Nine  thousand  dollars'  worth  of 
tea  was  destroyed.  Rather  than  pay  an  unjust  tax  on 
tea,  the  Sons  of  Liberty  made  up  their  minds  to  destroy 
every  chest  of  tea  brought  into  Boston  Harbor !"  The 
old  deacon  smote  the  table  with  his  fist  in  his  indigna- 
tion. Then  he  added  in  a  calmer  tone  to  his  wife: 
"What  would  you  say,  Mrs.  W.,  to  a  glass  of  port?" 

" Thank  you,  my  dear,  a  very  little,  just  half  a  glass. 
As  to  the  tea  tax,"  sighed  Mrs.  Wibird,  "I  should  not 
mind  in  one  way,  if  it  were  four  times  as  high,  because 
then  we  should  never  see  any  more  tea.  To  my  think- 
ing, it  is  a  poisonous  weed.  My  poor  father  used  to 
drink  twelve  dishes  of  tea  at  a  sitting,  and  it  ruined 
his  health." 

But  the  Deacon  shook  his  pink  bald  head  with  great 
energy  and  said  it  was  not  the  tax  itself  that  he  ob- 
jected to,  but  the  principle  behind  it. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       199 

"No  taxation  without  representation,  that  is  what  we 
say,"  declared  he.  "We  are  not  represented  in  the 
English  Parliament,  and  so  it  has  no  right  to  lay  taxes 
on  us.  Only  our  own  representatives  in  our  own 
Assemblies  have  the  right  to  tax  us. — Now  you  boys 
are  ready  for  a  second  helping,  I  can  see  that.  Come, 
Jonathan,  the  drumstick.  You  need  not  be  afraid  of 
those  preserves,  Miss  Nabby,  they  are  wholesome.— 
The  Proclamation  of  1763,"  he  went  on,  "shows  how 
impossible  it  is  for  Englishmen  thousands  of  miles 
away  to  understand  our  needs.  No  white  man  who 
settles  west  of  the  Allegheny  River  can  have  a  legal 
claim  to  his  land.  The  greater  part  of  our  country, 
that  vast  region  of  the  Northwest  Territory,  is  sup- 
posed to  belong  to  Indians  only!" 

At  this  Jonathan  spoke  up  for  the  first  time. 

"The  soil  around  Warrenton  is  very  stony;  it  seems 
to  grow  stones.  I  have  always  thought,  sir,  that  I 
should  like  to  go  west  when  I  am  older." 

"Very  well,  my  boy,  then  England  must  change  her 
tune  if  you  are  to  have  a  legal  claim  to  your  land  in 
the  west." 

They  now  began  to  talk  over  the  possibilities  of  the 
western  territory,  and  Deacon  Wibird  said  solemnly: 

"Mr.  Thomas  Jefferson  of  Virginia  thinks  it  may  be 
a  thousand  years  before  the  whole  continent  is  settled 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific.  And  he  dares  not  hope 
that  it  will  ever  come  under  one  government." 

Mrs.  Hale's  thoughts  had  returned  to  the  political 
differences  among  the  colonists.  She  was  wondering, 


200          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

if  war  were  really  declared,  what  would  become  of  the 
Tories  in  Warrenton.  The  colonists  who  sided  with 
England  in  the  quarrel  were  called  Tories,  the  name  of 
a  political  party  in  England. 

"The  Tories  are  beginning  to  hide  their  heads 
already,"  said  Mrs.  Wibird.  "I  very  much  fear  that 
poor  Parson  Dove  will  soon  have  to  leave  town.  When 
he  gave  out  his  text  last  Sunday,  the  congregation 
expected  a  Tory  sermon:  'Hear,  0  Heavens,  and  give 
ear,  0  Earth,  I  have  nourished  and  brought  up  children 
and  they  have  rebelled  against  me.9  But  he  was  cau- 
tious and  kept  entirely  to  the  Scriptures.  However, 
he  is  very  much  shocked  at  the  violent  speeches 
against  the  British  made  by  some  of  our  young  patriots 
and  when  he  met  me  yesterday  he  said;  'Dear,  dear, 
we  must  keep  calm.  I  fear  great  trouble  is  ahead 
of  us.  I  hear  that  the  young  Rebels  are  making 
violent  speeches  that  plainly  break  the  Third  and 
Fifth  Commandments." 

"  But,  indeed,  my  dear,  some  of  the  Tories  are  also 
using  violent  language,"  said  the  Deacon.  "Captain 
Lambert  cried  out  in  town  meeting  with  a  volley  of 
oaths,  'Anyone  who  denies  the  right  of  Parliament  to 
tax  us  is  a  fool." 

"Oh!"  Mrs.  Hale  was  startled  and  troubled  by  this 
statement.  Then  she  said  gravely:  >( There  are 
two  sides  to  every  question,  and  this  war  will  be 
like  a  civil  war,  because  there  are  so  many  colonists 
who  are  Tories,  and  so  many  people  in  England  who 
sympathize  with  the  grievances  of  the  Rebels." 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION      201 

When  the  dinner  was  ended,  Deacon  Wibird  gave  a 
toast  in  the  formal,  flowery  fashion  of  the  time : 

"May  the  fair  dove  of  liberty,  in  this  deluge  of  des- 
potism, find  a  rest  to  the  sole  of  her  foot  in  America!" 


THE  FIRST  YEARS  OF  THE  REVOLUTIONARY  WAR 

The  next  day  all  kinds  of  warlike  preparations  were 
made  in  Warrenton.  Intrenchments  were  dug,  breast- 
works were  thrown  up,  and  a  cannon  was  mounted  on 
a  small  hill  overlooking  the  town.  As  it  happened,  the 
British  troops  did  not  pass  through  Warrenton,  but 
they  passed  through  some  villages  in  the  neighborhood 
on  their  retreat  to  Boston,  and  the  booming  of  the  can- 
non could  be  heard.  To  Mrs.  Hale  it  was  a  terrible 
sound,  for  it  brought  to  her  pictures  of  men  wounded 
and  dying.  Little  Nabby  understood  nothing  of  its 
meaning,  she  found  only  amusement  in  it,  and  would 
mimic,  "Bang,  bang,  boom,  boom!"  To  Jonathan  the 
amazing  roar  sounded  grand  and  wonderful,  like  the 
roar  of  thunder,  and  he  wished  that  he  were  old 
enough  to  join  in  the  fighting. 

During  the  first  year  of  the  war,  the  news  that  came 
to  Warrenton  was  encouraging.  The  colonists  had 
resisted  the  British  successfully  at  Boston.  Jonathan 
went  regularly  every  week  to  read  the  Boston  Packet 
at  Deacon  Wibird's,  and  he  learned  a  great  deal  about 
the  political  situation. 

The  colonies  were  united  in  their  resistance  against 
England.  There  were  now  thirteen  colonies  in  America, 


202          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

and  they  all  adopted  state  constitutions  and  renounced 
allegiance  to  England,  thus  becoming  thirteen  inde- 
pendent states  of  America.  Each  state  had  a  governor 
and  an  assembly  elected  by  its  own  people. 

When  the  trouble  with  England  first  started,  the 
thirteen  colonies  had  each  elected  two  or  more  repre- 
sentatives, called  delegates,  to  be  sent  to  a  general 
meeting  in  Philadelphia,  called  the  Continental  Con- 
gress. This  Continental  Congress  stood  for  the  unity 
and  mutual  protection  of  the  colonies,  and  the  conduct 
of  the  war  was  placed  in  its  charge. 

After  the  battle  of  Lexington  and  Concord,  a  second 
Continental  Congress  was  called  which  in  July,  1776, 
signed  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  These  words 
resounded  throughout  the  country  like  a  bugle  call: 

"We  hold  these  truths  to  be  self-evident,  that  all 
men  are  created  equal,  that  they  are  endowed  by  their 
Creator  with  certain  inalienable  rights,  that  among 
these  are  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness." 

Jonathan  was  too  young  to  join  the  militia,  but 
the  boys  of  his  school  had  formed  a  club  called  the 
"Hearts  of  Oak,"  which  he  joined.  Some  of  the  boys 
used  to  drill  in  green  uniforms  with  leather  caps,  on 
which  was  inscribed  the  slogan  Freedom  or  Death. 
Jonathan  could  not  afford  to  buy  a  green  uniform 
or  a  leather  hat,  but  he  had  his  father's  old  gun, 
and  with  it  he  went  hunting  in  the  woods,  trailing 
squirrels  and  beavers,  because  he  knew  that  there  is 
no  better  training  in  marksmanship  than  the  training 
of  a  hunter. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       203 

At  this  time,  too,  he  began  to  keep  a  diary.  His  diary 
was  not  merely  a  history  of  daily  events,  but  a  means 
of  strengthening  his  character.  Mrs.  Hale  brought  up 
her  children  according  to  the  sternly  religious  and 
moral  rules  of  Puritanism.  Jonathan  would  write  down 
in  his  diary  the  texts  of  the  sermons  which  he  heard  on 
Sundays,  and  thought  would  have  a  good  effect  upon 
his  behaviour.  He  also  recorded  stern  resolutions  and 
took  himself  to  task  for  wasting  his  time.1  Such  entries 
as  these  were  numerous: 

"Accomplish't  vury  little  this  Afternoone.2  Went  out  on  to  the 
Common  and  plaid  Ball  with  the  Freedum  or  Deth  boys." 

"Spent  the  Afternoone  Birdsnesting  with  Sam.  Let  me  Blush  if 
I  do  not  keep  a  more  Strickt  Account  of  every  Minit  of  the  Day." 

"  Roase  shamefully  late,  at  six  o'clock,  a  Sluggard's  hower." 

"Having  mad  up  my  mind  to  mend  my  ways,  roase  at  fower, 
and  unpitcht  a  lode  of  Hay." 

Some  might  call  Jonathan  a  prig.  He  was,  however, 
only  a  good  Puritan  boy  with  a  strong  will.  His  was  the 
strict  upbringing  of  many  of  the  boys  who  were  to  fight 
in  the  Revolutionary  War  and  become  our  first  American 
citizens.  Such  training  produced  men  of  decided  charac- 
ter, men  of  principle,  ready  for  the  hardest  work,  whether 
of  brain  or  of  body.  They  said,  "  We  are  ready  to  swim 
or  sink,  live  or  die,  survive  or  perish  with  our  country/' 

During  the  second  and  later  years  of  the  war,  the 
news  that  Jonathan  read  in  the  Boston  Packet  was  often 

1  See  the  Diary  of  John  Adams. 

2  Incorrect  spelling  was  very  common  even  among  educated  people  in 
those  days. 


204          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

discouraging.  The  British  had  taken  possession  of  New 
York,  and  General  Washington  was  unable  to  move 
them.  The  Battle  of  Monmouth  was  a  failure  owing  to 
the  conduct  of  General  Lee,  who  had  disobeyed  the 
orders  of  his  chief  and  refused  to  march  forward  to  help 
Washington's  men.  In  the  year  1777,  the  colonists 
were  successful  in  the  north,  and  the  British  general, 
Burgoyne,  was  obliged  to  surrender  at  Saratoga.  But 
this  same  year  ended  sadly  for  General  Washington  and 
his  men.  Washington  went  into  winter  quarters  at 
Valley  Forge,  near  Philadelphia,  which  city  was  then  in 
the  hands  of  the  British.  The  American  troops,  camped 
in  a  small  valley  shut  in  by  high  hills  white  with  snow 
and  ice,  had  not  enough  food,  nor  enough  fuel,  nor 
enough  clothing.  The  men  were  starving,  freezing, 
and  dying.  When  they  marched,  they  left  trails  of 
scarlet  blood  in  the  snow  from  their  bleeding  bare  feet. 
Washington  was  doing  what  he  could  to  feed  them 
at  his  own  expense,  but  it  was  impossible  for  one  man 
to  feed  and  clothe  a  whole  army.  The  root  of  the 
tragedy  lay  in  the  fact  that  the  central  government,  the 
Continental  Congress,  was  too  weak.  It  had  the  con- 
duct of  the  war  in  its  charge,  and  yet  it  had  no  power 
to  raise  taxes.  Washington  wrote  long  letters  almost 
daily  to  the  Congress,  begging  for  money  and  help, 
and  the  Congress,  in  its  turn,  would  write  letters  to  the 
various  governors  and  assemblies  of  the  Thirteen  States, 
begging  them  to  raise  taxes  and  buy  supplies  for 
Washington's  army.  But  the  states  did  not  always 
carry  out  the  wishes  of  the  weak  Congress. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       205 

Even  in  Warrenton,  the  people  were  beginning  to 
feel  some  of  the  effects  of  weak  government.  Because 
it  seemed  impossible  to  raise  enough  in  taxes  to  pay 
for  the  war,  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  like  most  of 
the  other  states,  printed  a  great  deal  of  paper  money, 
which  was  a  mere  promise  to  pay.  The  people  did 
not  trust  the  promise  of  their  government,  so  they 
hoarded  their  gold  and  silver.  This  resulted  in  very 
high  prices,  and  a  dollar  in  silver  became  a  great  rarity. 
Mrs.  Hale  was  able  to  give  her  children  good  food  be- 
cause it  was  produced  on  their  own  farm,  but  in  all 
her  purchases  she  had  to  economize.  Goods  imported 
from  abroad  were  very  high.  Sugar  was  twelve  shil- 
lings a  pound,  molasses  was  twelve  dollars  a  gallon, 
and  pins  and  needles  were  almost  as  scarce  as  diamonds. 

And  so  the  time  passed  until  Jonathan  had  reached 
his  sixteenth  birthday,  and  was  old  enough  to  enlist. 
He  told  his  mother  of  his  intention,  and  she  made  no 
objection.  She  said  that  he  had  always  been  a  good 
boy,  and  she  expected  him  to  do  his  duty.  Samuel,  only 
fourteen  years  old,  was  ready  to  take  over  the  manage- 
ment of  the  farm,  and  Jonathan  was  impatient  to  join 
Washington's  army,  near  New  York,  and  see  some- 
thing of  the  country. 

A  STAGECOACH  JOURNEY 

It  was  early  one  morning,  in  the  month  of  June, 
1781,  that  Jonathan  left  Warrenton.  Mrs.  Hale  and 
Samuel  and  Abigail  walked  with  him  to  the  courtyard 


206 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


Mail  Stage, 

From  Wbiteftovm  to  Canajoharrie, 


^PARKER'S  of  the  Plough  Inn, 

where  the  stage- 
coach to  Boston 
stopped  while  the 
horses  were  being 
changed.  He 
kissed  his  mother 
good-by,  shoul- 
dered his  gun  and 
knapsack,  and 
clambered  up  to 
his  seat  in  the 
coach. 

When  the  coach 
was  filled  the  whip 
called  out:  "All 
in.  No  more.  Off 
you  go,  bays." 
Then  the  four  bay 
horses  started  off 
with  a  rush  and 
clattered  out  of 
Warrenton.  Soon 
the  wheels  were 
humming  along 
the  firm  highway 
that  led  to  Boston. 
In  bad  weather,  traveling  in  a  stagecoach  was  not  a 
very  pleasant  experience.  Twelve  persons  were  crowded 
into  one  wagon,  with  their  bags  and  parcels  thrust 


^  I  ^HE  Mail  leaves  Wbitejtown  every 

A  Monday  andTburfday,  at  tiuo  o^  clock 
.  and  proceeds  to  Old  Fort  Scbuyler  tie 
fame  evening  ;  next  mornmg  ftarts  at  Jour 
o'clock,  and  arrives  at  Canajobarrie  in  the 
evening  ;  exchanges  pajfengers  with  the  Al- 
bany and  Cboper/fcum  ftages,  and  the  next 
day  returns  to  Old  Fort  Scbuyler. 

Fare  for  pqffengers,  Two  Dollars-,  <way 
pajjenger s,  Four  Pence  per  mile  \  iqlb.  bag- 
gage gratis  ;  15010?.  rated  t be  fame  as  a 
pajjenger. 

Seats-may  be  bad  by  applying  at  tbe  Poft- 
Office,  WbiteftoiDn^  at  tbe  boufe  of  tbe  fub- 
criber,  Old  Fort  Scbuyler,  or  at  Captain 
Roofs,  Canajobarrie- 

JASON  PARKER. 


AN  ADVERTISEMENT  OF  A  MAIL  STAGE 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       207 

in  between  their  legs.  There  was  little  protection 
from  the  heat  of  midsummer,  or  the  cold  of  winter. 
But  on  this  June  day,  it  was  delightful  to  drive 
along,  watching  the  white  road  unwind  itself,  the 
meadows  and  wheat  fields  slipping  past,  and  the  clouds 
of  the  sky  continually  changing.  The  New  England 
countryside  looked  very  familiar  to  Jonathan,  so  this 
part  of  the  journey  afforded  him  little  excitement. 

But  Boston,  which  he  reached  in  the  evening,  was  an 
amazing,  new  experience.  The  streets  of  Boston  were 
crooked  and  narrow,  and  lit  up  at  night  with  a  few 
smoky  oil  lamps;  nevertheless,  to  Jonathan  Hale,  Boston 
was  a  great  city.  He  was  utterly  confused  and  dazzled 
by  the  many  shop  windows,  and  the  crowds  of  people 
passing  to  and  fro  on  the  streets.  His  ears  were  filled 
with  the  din  of  carriage  wheels  and  with  the  gabble 
of  voices. 

The  whip  drew  rein  in  front  of  an  inn  called  The 
Green  Dragon,  and  there  Jonathan  spent  the  night.  He 
dined  with  all  the  other  travelers,  as  they  all  ate  at  one 
large  table;  and  he  slept  in  a  room  containing  no  less 
than  eleven  beds  full  of  strange  men. 

The  stagecoach  to  New  York  did  not  leave  until  the 
afternoon  of  the  next  day,  so  that  Jonathan  was  able 
to  walk  about  during  the  morning  and  see  some  of  the 
sights  of  the  city.  For  the  first  time  in  his  life,  he  began 
to  feel  ashamed  of  his  clothes.  Everything  he  had  on 
was  homemade.  His  mother  had  woven  the  grey  home- 
spun of  his  suit,  then  she  had  cut  out  the  cloth  and 
sewn  it.  She  had  also  knitted  his  stockings.  His  shoes 


208          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

had  been  made  by  a  traveling  cobbler,  who  had  spent 
a  whole  day  at  the  farm,  cutting  out  very  sensible, 
square-toed  shoes  for  all  the  family.  Even  Jonathan's 
hat  had  been  manufactured  by  the  village  hatter.  Now 
he  was  meeting  on  the  streets  fine  gentlemen  who  wore 
velvet  clothes  and  black  silk  stockings,  and  had  their 
hair  powdered  in  the  latest  French  fashion. 

At  midday,  he  called  on  a  friend  of  Deacon  Wibird's, 
a  Mr.  Nick  Boylston,  who  was  a  wealthy  Boston  mer- 
chant. At  Mr.  Boylston's  home  he  was  given  an  elegant 
dinner,  indeed,  and  the  house  seemed  to  him  fit  for  a 
nobleman.  The  floors  were  covered  with  Turkish  car- 
pets, the  windows  were  curtained  with  crimson  dam- 
ask, and  there  were  painted  hangings  on  the  walls.  In 
the  hallway  was  a  marble  table,  and  a  beautiful,  tall 
clock.  More  than  ever  Jonathan  felt  ashamed  of  his 
countrified  appearance. 

In  the  afternoon  he  set  off  in  the  stagecoach  on  the 
long  journey  to  Dobbs  Ferry,  near  New  York,  which 
was  to  take  three  days.  For  a  time  he  rode  among  great, 
lonely  hills.  Then  he  came  into  the  rich  Connecticut 
Valley.  Here  were  broad,  flat  pastures,  richer  than  any 
he  had  ever  seen  in  Massachusetts.  The  distances  he 
was  covering  hour  after  hour  during  these  three  days 
seemed  to  him  immense,  greater  than  anything  he 
had  imagined.  Yet  he  knew  that  these  great  states 
through  which  he  was  journeying  were  only  the  fringe 
of  the  Atlantic  seaboard.  If  a  road  could  be  built 
right  across  the  whole  continent,  how  long  would  it 
take,  he  wondered,  to  drive  in  a  stagecoach  from  the 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       209 

Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  coast?  Probably  months  and 
months  and  months.  At  the  end  of  the  third  day  the 
stagecoach  reached  the  Bronx  River,  north  of  New 
York,  and  Jonathan  climbed  down  from  his  seat, 
stretched  his  stiff  legs,  and  walked  in  the  direction  of 
Dobbs  Ferry. 

His  life  as  a  recruit  in  Washington's  camp  for  the 
next  few  months  was  a  very  hard  one.  There  was  a 
constant  repetition  of  drilling,  target  practice,  bay- 
onet practice,  and  marches,  for  Washington  was  train- 
ing his  men  as  thoroughly  as  time  and  circumstances 
would  permit. 

THE  YORKTOWN  CAMPAIGN 

In  order  to  follow  the  great  Yorktown  campaign  in 
which  Jonathan  was  to  take  part,  one  must  know  the 
position  of  the  British  and  American  armies  in  the 
summer  of  1781. 

Sir  Henry  Clinton,  a  British  general,  was  occupying 
New  York  with  a  large  British  army,  and  Washington's 
camp  was  close  by,  at  Dobbs  Ferry.  With  Washington 
was  the  French  general,  Rochambeau,  and  a  force  of 
French  soldiers. 

In  Virginia,  there  was  another  British  army  and 
another  American  army.  Here,  the  American  army 
was  commanded  by  the  French  general,  Lafayette, 
and  was  quartered  at  Williamsburg,  while  the  British 
army,  under  Lord  Cornwallis,  was  at  Yorktown.  There 
was  also  a  small  British  fleet  in  Norfolk  harbor,  pro- 
tecting Cornwallis. 


210 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


A  PICTURE  OF  PHILADELPHIA 


Washington  at  this  time  was  expecting  a  French 
admiral,  Count  de  Grasse,  to  sail  with  a  fleet  from  the 
West  Indies  to  New  York,  to  help  him  capture  that  city 
from  the  British.  But,  instead  of  waiting  for  the  Count 
de  Grasse  to  reach  New  York,  Washington  made  up 
his  mind  to  go  south  with  his  own  and  Rochambeau's 
army  and  join  forces  with  Lafayette  in  Virginia.  He 
planned  to  reach  Lafayette  at  the  same  time  as  Count 
de  Grasse  should  reach  Norfolk,  a  port  near  Yorktown, 
and  with  the  combined  forces  to  capture  Yorktown. 

The  British  general  in  New  York  was  expecting  an 
attack  at  any  moment,  so  Washington  decided  to  hood- 
wink him.  Washington's  army  made  certain  prepa- 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       211 


AS  IT  APPEARED  IN  1780 


rations  and  movements  which  persuaded  Sir  Henry 
Clinton  that  an  attack  on  New  York  was  bound  to  take 
place  very  soon.  For  several  days  he  could  not  find  out 
exactly  where  Washington's  troops  were,  nor  what  they 
were  doing.  All  the  roads  leading  out  from  New  York 
were  guarded,  and  the  British  spies  could  not  succeed 
in  crossing  the  Continental  lines. 

Meanwhile,  Washington  was  carrying  out  his  plan 
and  was  secretly  making  a  rapid  march  southward  to 
Virginia.  The  men  were  covering  eighteen  miles  a  day. 
On  the  first  of  September,  Jonathan  and  his  comrades 
crossed  the  Delaware  River  at  Trenton.  The  next  day 
they  passed  through  Philadelphia. 


212          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

This  city,  Jonathan  found,  was  more  beautiful  than 
Boston,  larger  and  finer  looking.  But  there  was  little 
time  to  see  any  of  the  public  buildings,  as  the  army 
was  on  a  quick  march.  Jonathan  saw  the  State  House, 
for  the  troops  were  reviewed  in  front  of  it  by  the 
delegates  of  the  Continental  Congress.  Bands  were 
playing,  and  the  people  of  the  city  collected  in  great 
crowds  on  the  streets.  Jonathan  was  interested  in  see- 
ing the  delegates,  a  set  of  serious-looking,  black-coated 
men.  They  were  having  at  this  time  a  hard  struggle  to 
obtain  money  for  the  needs  of  the  army. 

Some  of  the  soldiers  who  had  not  received  any  pay 
for  months  and  months  were  seriously  discontented, 
and  had  little  respect  for  the  Continental  Congress. 

"Those  delegates  are  a  body  of  old  women,"  they 
grumbled,  "who  can  do  nothing  but  talk.  They  mean 
well,  but  they  have  no  real  power." 

After  the  troops  had  marched  out  of  Philadelphia, 
they  came  into  a  wonderfully  rich  farming  country 
owned  by  Pennsylvania  Quakers  and  Dutch  settlers. 
As  they  marched  further  and  further  to  the  south,  the 
scene  changed  again  and  again.  The  air  was  clear  and 
sweet,  and  the  woods  through  which  the  soldiers 
passed  were  very  beautiful.  But  the  roads  were  full 
of  ruts,  and  there  were  no  bridges  over  the  rivers. 

The  roads  were  so  bad,  in  fact,  that  the  stage- 
coaches were  frequently  upset.  One  morning  the 
soldiers  saw  a  stagecoach  drawn  up  in  front  of  an 
inn.  As  the  driver  mounted  into  his  seat,  he  grinned 
cheerfully  over  his  shoulder  to  the  passengers,  "I 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION      213 

hope  we  shan't  upsit.  I  han't  driv'  this  road  this 
two  month." 

Several  of  the  passengers  already  had  their  heads 
bandaged  with  bloodstained  napkins.  They  explained 
to  the  soldiers  that  they  had  received  some  cuts  and 
bruises,  though  they  had  been  upset  only  once. 

"The  other  coach,"  they  said,  "upset  twice  last  night." 

About  the  middle  of  September,  the  troops  arrived 
at  Williamsburg,  Virginia,  and  Washington  joined 
forces  with  Lafayette.  On  September  28,  the  com- 
bined armies  marched  toward  Yorktown  to  attack  the 
British  troops  under  Cornwallis. 

Cornwallis  was  trapped.  Retreat  by  sea  was  cut  off 
by  the  French  fleet  under  Count  de  Grasse,  who  had 
defeated  the  small  British  fleet.  On  the  land  side  there 
was  an  enemy  army  of  sixteen  thousand  men  hemming 
him  in,  and  Cornwallis  himself  had  only  seven  or  eight 
thousand  men.  He  threw  up  strong  defenses  around 
Yorktown  and  waited. 

Jonathan  was  put  to  work  with  many  others  dig- 
ging trenches,  and  on  the  ninth  of  October  the  bom- 
bardment began.  It  continued  for  nearly  twenty-four 
hours.  The  air  was  full  of  terrible  roars  and  thuds  and 
queer  whistling  sounds.  The  earth  was  ripped  up  and 
the  flying  dirt  struck  Jonathan's  face.  He  saw  some  of 
the  soldiers  fall  to  the  ground,  dead  or  wounded.  He 
began  to  feel  very  much  afraid;  he  was  trembling,  and 
wanted  to  turn  and  run,  but  he  managed  to  hold  his 
ground  and  hide  his  fear.  At  the  end  of  twenty-four 
hours,  the  British  guns  ceased  to  reply. 


214          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

On  the  night  of  October  eleventh,  new  trenches  were 
begun  within  two  and  three  hundred  yards  of  the  Brit- 
ish works,  and  it  was  determined  that  the  Americans 
should  try  to  capture  two  of  the  British  batteries  by 
assault,  under  the  leadership  of  Colonel  Alexander 
Hamilton. 

The  signal  for  the  advance  was  a  shell  from  the 
American  batteries,  followed  by  one  from  the  French. 
Together  with  the  other  soldiers,  Jonathan  moved 
silently  out  of  the  intrenchments  under  cover  of  the 
darkness.  They  ran  across  the  open  ground  at  full 
speed,  under  a  hot  fire  of  rifle  bullets,  and  leapt  up  on 
to  the  defenses  of  the  British  batteries.  For  nine 
minutes  there  was  fierce  fighting,  and  then  the  Brit- 
ish gave  up  the  batteries.  Jonathan  was  unhurt. 

The  fighting  continued  for  the  next  few  days;  then, 
on  October  17,  General  Cornwallis  asked  for  a  truce. 
On  October  19,  he  surrendered.  The  news  was  car- 
ried all  over  the  Thirteen  States  by  postriders,  and  in 
the  big  towns  and  the  small  towns  and  in  the  sleepy 
villages,  the  night  watchmen  called  out : 

"Past  ten  o'clock,  and  Cornwallis  is  taken." 
"Past  twelve  o'clock,  and  Cornwallis  is  taken." 
"Past  three  o'clock,  and  Cornwallis  is  taken." 
Although  peace  was  not  declared  until  two  years 
later,  Jonathan's  regiment  was  disbanded  in  the  north 
soon  after  the  siege  of  Yorktown.    He  started  on  his 
homeward  journey,  feeling  very  hopeful  for  the  future. 
He  believed  America  had  won  her  victory,  and  that  the 
United  States  might  become  a  strong  nation. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION      215 

THE  NORTHWEST  TERRITORY 

Jonathan  passed  again  through  Philadelphia  on  his 
way  home,  and  was  given  a  leave  of  absence,  so  that 
he  was  able  to  pay  a  visit  to  Deacon  Wibird's  brother, 
a  Quaker  merchant. 

He  found  Rachel  Wibird  grown  up  into  a  girl  of  six- 
teen; but  she  looked  very  much  as  he  had  remembered 
her,  with  her  red-brown  hair  and  her  grey  Quaker  dress. 
The  whole  city  of  Philadelphia  was  rejoicing  over  the 
victory,  and  the  sober  Quaker  family  who  did  not 
believe  in  war  could  be  very  sincerely  glad  that  the 
war  was  nearly  over.  They  made  much  of  Jonathan 
and  this  was  a  very  happy  time  in  his  life.  They  gave 
a  dinner  in  his  honor,  and  Jonathan  remembered  what 
Mrs.  Wibird  had  said:  "These  quiet  Friends,  with 
their  thee's  and  thou's  and  their  grey  clothes,  know 
how  to  keep  a  good  table."  Turtle  soup,  baked  meats, 
flummery,  jellies,  sweetmeats,  trifles,  whipped  silla- 
bubs, floating  islands,  gooseberry  fool,  and  then  fruits, 
raisins,  and  almonds — Jonathan  had  never  eaten  such 
a  grand  dinner. 

After  his  stay  in  Philadelphia,  he  went  back  to 
Warrenton  in  a  hopeful  mood,  and  all  America  felt 
hopeful  with  him.  "The  times  that  try  men's  souls  are 
over,"  wrote  Thomas  Paine. 

But  when  Jonathan  had  settled  down  to  his  daily 
work  on  the  farm,  he  began  to  grow  discontented  and 
restless.  He  was  disappointed  at  the  trend  in  public 
affairs,  and  more  than  ever  wished  to  go  west  and 


216          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

clear  a  farm  for  himself  in  the  wilderness  beyond  the 
Allegheny  River. 

He  found  that  the  end  of  the  war  had  not  meant 
to  the  people  of  Warrenton  what  it  had  meant  to 
him.  To  him  it  was  the  birth  of  a  new  nation,  and 
he  was  looking  forward  to  the  time  when  the  United 
States  would  become  a  powerful  country,  united 
under  a  strong  national,  or  federal,  government.  But 
the  people  of  Warrenton,  most  of  whom  had  never 
been  outside  Massachusetts,  were  looking  backward 
into  the  past,  when  Massachusetts  had  been  un- 
disturbed by  the  British  and  they  had  enjoyed  self- 
government. 

"We  want  our  old  self-government,"  said  Deacon 
Wibird.  "We  want  no  upstart  National  Government 
to  tyrannize  over  us.  We  must  stand  up  for  States' 
Rights,  my  boy!" 

During  the  next  few  years,  long  talks  and  fierce  argu- 
ments were  carried  on  in  the  ale-houses  of  Warrenton 
between  the  Federalists  and  the  Anti-Federalists,  that 
is,  between  the  people  who  wanted  a  strong  national 
government  and  those  who  did  not.  Jonathan  was  a 
Federalist  but  he  took  very  little  share  in  the  discus- 
sions, for  he  was  working  hard  on  the  farm  and  saving 
up  money  so  as  to  be  able  to  buy  a  plot  of  land  in  the 
Northwest  Territory. 

No  one  at  this  period  felt  any  respect  for  the  weak 
Continental  Congress,  under  which  the  country  was 
drifting  into  confusion  and  lawlessness.  Because  it 
had  no  power  to  raise  taxes,  it  was  almost  bankrupt, 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       217 

and  could  not  pay  its  war  debts.  There  was  a  great 
deal  of  quarrelling  and  jealousy  between  the  Thirteen 
States.  They  quarrelled  over  paper  money,  and 
quarrelled  over  trade,  and  now  they  began  quarrelling 
over  the  Northwest  Territory  which  was  claimed  by 
various  states.  The  problem  was  to  decide  to  which 
states  did  it,  or  should  it,  now  belong?  No  less  than 
four  states  laid  claims  to  it. 

At  last  from  the  little  State  of  Maryland  came  a 
suggestion  as  to  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  The  pro- 
posal was  that  the  Northwest  Territory  should  be  put 
under  the  control  of  Congress.  If  the  Congress  could 
have  control  of  the  Northwest  Territory,  it  could  sell 
plots  of  undeveloped  land  to  pioneer  farmers,  and  use 
the  money  received  to  help  pay  off  the  nation's  debt. 
People  began  to  realize  that  a  strong  national  gov- 
ernment was  indeed  needed  and  steps  were  taken  in 
this  direction. 

This  was  what  Jonathan  had  been  waiting  for.  He 
would  buy  a  plot  of  land  in  the  Northwest  Territory, 
gain  a  legal  right  to  it,  and  the  money  he  paid  would 
help  to  strengthen  the  national  government. 

Now  he  began  to  lay  very  definite  plans  for  the 
future.  Rachel  Wibird  had  again  visited  her  uncle  and 
aunt  in  Warrenton,  and  Jonathan's  diary  for  the  past 
year  had  been  full  of  allusions  to  R.  W .: 

"Went  a-hunting  with  Deacon  Wibird,  and  afterwoods  Supp't 
with  his  Lady  and  R.  W." 

"Roade  over  to  Deacon  Wibird's  and  dronk  Tea  thare." 
"Dreamed  away  the  Hole  Day." 


218          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

"Friday  afternoone,  Saturday  afternoone,  Sunday  after- 
noone.  All  spent  in  wastefull  idlenesse,  or,  which  is  Wurse,  in 
Gallanting  the  Girls.  O  the  Sad  Effeckt  of  War  in  Distrackting  a 
Country!" 

"R.  W.  is  more  calm  and  serious  than  other  Girls.  She  thinks 
over  the  Books  she  has  Red.  She  sets,  with  her  eyes  stedily  fixed, 
in  Deep  Thought.  Hur  friend,  on  the  other  hand,  is  Plump  and 
Pretty  and  Pert,  but  has  no  Hed.  She  thinks  and  Reeds  much 
less  than  R.  W.  Yet  R.  W.  can  be  naughty  and  witty,  Unex- 
pecktedly." 

"Had  an  interesting  Conversation  yesterday  with  R.  W.,  on 
the  subgickt  of  Married  Lif:— 

R.  W .  'Would  thee  rather  spend  thy  evenings  At  Horn,  by  thy 
own  fireside,  reeding  with  thy  Wif,  or  would  thee  rather  spend 
them  in  Inns  or  jolly  Clubs?' 

Self.  'Should  prefur  the  Conversation  of  a  Sensible  Wif  to  anny 
other  Companny;  that  is,  generally,  but  not  allways.  I  should  not 
lik  my  Horn  to  be  a  Prizen.' 

R.  W.  'Suppose  Thee  had  been  at  Work,  and  came  home 
Weary,  and  thy  Wif  should  meet  thee  with  a  Sour  or  Inattentive 
Face,  how  would  thee  feel?' 

Self.    'I  would  flee  my  country,  or  she  should!' 

R.  W.  'But  how  can  a  Married  Cupple  avoid  falling  into  a 
Pashun  or  out  of  Temper  on  some  occasions,  and  Hurting  each 
other's  Feelings?' 

Self.  'By  Resolving  agenst  it.  But  if  it  happens  that  Both 
get  out  of  Humor  and  a  Stormy  Dispute  follows,  yet  both  will  feel 
very  Sorry  and  AfFektionate  afterwoods,  and  forgive  each  other 
Tenderly  and  beg  forgiveness,  and  so  love  each  other  the  better 
for  it  in  the  Futur.' 

After  Rachel  returned  home,  Jonathan  wrote  to  Mr. 
Wibird  of  Philadelphia,  asking  for  his  daughter's  hand 
in  marriage.  His  letter  was  written  in  the  stiff,  formal 
style  of  the  day,  and  it  was  very  different  from  his 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       219 

conversations  with  Rachel.  "I  am  awar,"  he  began, 
"that  Miss  Rachel's  prudence,  and  the  love  she  bares 
to  her  Amiable  and  Tender  Parents,  forbids  her  Giv- 
ing Encurridgement  to  anyone  without  Thare  Consent." 
But,  however  stiff  and'  formal  the  style,  it  was  deeply 
respectful  and  full  of  warm  feeling,  and  it  served  its 
purpose,  for  Jonathan  received  a  favorable  reply. 

When  he  arrived  in  Philadelphia  for  his  marriage, 
the  first  sight  that  caught  his  eye  was  a  group  of  black- 
coated  men  standing  on  the  bank  of  the  river  and  watch- 
ing a  little  ferryboat  plying  against  the  current.  It  was 
not  moved  either  by  sails  or  oars,  but  by  steam.  A 
passer-by  remarked  to  him,  "That  is  the  new  invention 
of  Mr.  John  Fitch  of  this  town.  It  is  arousing  a  good 
deal  of  curiosity,  but  very  few  people  understand  the 
workings  of  it." 

Jonathan  thought  of  the  westward  journey  he  was 
about  to  make  with  his  young  wife,  and  said  to  himself: 
"How  fine  it  would  be  if  we  could  explore  our  great 
western  rivers  in  boats  driven  by  their  own  power. 
And  in  England  other  machines  are  driven  by  steam. 
Perhaps  our  cities  of  the  future  will  be  humming  with 
great  steam-driven  machines." 

Jonathan  found  that  he  could  make  his  land  deal  with- 
out difficulty.  He  traveled  to  New  York,  where  plots 
of  land  were  being  sold  at  public  auction,  and  bought 
several  hundred  acres  of  uncleared  forest  in  the  North- 
west Territory,  paying  to  Congress  two  dollars  an  acre. 

Then  the  wedding  took  place,  in  the  drawing-room  of 
the  Wibird  house  in  Philadelphia.  This  room  was 


220          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

and  square,  panelled  in  white.  It  was  decorated  for  the 
occasion  with  holly  and  illuminated  with  hundreds  of 
wax  candles.  Rachel  was  dressed  in  a  white  gown  with 
a  long  pointed  bodice.  Jonathan  wore  a  black  velvet 
coat  and  breeches,  and  white  silk  stockings.  Instead  of 
his  usual  square-toed  shoes,  he  had  on  a  pair  of  pumps 
with  shining  buckles. 

After  the  wedding,  they  both  put  away  their  fine 
clothes,  and  began  to  prepare  for  the  westward  journey. 
Rachel  knew  that  her  future  life  in  the  wilderness  was 
to  be  very  different  from  the  life  she  had  been  accus- 
tomed to,  for  in  her  father's  household  she  had  enjoyed 
'all  the  comfort  which  was  typical  of  a  wealthy  Quaker 
family  in  the  wealthiest  of  American  cities. 

Jonathan  first  took  Rachel  home  to  Warrenton,  and 
then  they  drove  together  in  a  wagon  to  Pittsburg, 
taking  with  them  farm  supplies  and  tools  as  well  as 
horses,  cattle,  sheep,  and  chickens.  At  Pittsburg,  which 
was  then  only  a  village,  they  began  their  journey  down 
the  Ohio  River  to  the  land  of  promise  in  the  west. 

Jonathan  lashed  two  rafts  together,  each  ninety  feet 
long,  and  built  a  small  wooden  shack  on  one  of  them, 
into  which  were  piled  Rachel's  household  treasures. 
Among  these  were  fine  linen,  silverware,  delftware, 
and  a  few  pieces  of  mahogany  furniture.  On  the  other 
raft  were  a  stack  of  hay,  and  the  horses  and  cows  and 
pigs  and  poultry,  together  with  the  wagon,  ploughs,  and 
other  farm  tools. 

The  young  people  had  brought  their  own  food  sup- 
plies, and  their  rafts  floated  with  the  current,  so  that 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       221 

their  journey  was  made  at  very  slight  expense.  The 
birds  were  singing  pleasantly  in  the  boughs  of  the  trees, 
for  it  was  the  spring  of  the  year,  and  the  river  flowed 
through  wild  forests.  For  hours  Rachel  would  sit  quiet- 
ly on  the  raft,  her  eyes  looking  steadily  ahead  at  the 
new  country.  At  meal  times  Jonathan  would  go  ashore 
and  chop  wood  for  the  fire,  while  Rachel  would  explore 
the  streams  and  the  waterfalls,  and  watch  the  horses 
and  cattle  grazing  along  the  river's  banks.  When  the 
fire  was  ready  Rachel  would  cook  the  meal.  Then  they 
would  drive  the  horses  and  cattle  back  to  the  raft  and 
continue  on  their  way. 

When  they  reached  the  plot  of  land  that  Jonathan 
had  bought,  they  found  that  it  was  a  region  of  gloomy 
forest,  waste  land,  and  swamp.  But  Jonathan  set  to 
work  with  enthusiasm,  clearing  it  and  draining  it.  Like 
the  thousands  of  other  American  pioneers,  he  could  see 
the  future  and  gain  courage  from  it.  Out  of  the  gloomy 
forest  and  swamp,  he  thought  of  a  great  country  devel- 
oping, with  cornfields  stretching  out  for  thousands  of 
miles,  like  the  ocean,  under  the  expanse  of  the  sky,  and 
immense  pastures  feeding  herds  of  cattle,  and  big  cities 
manufacturing  machines  more  powerful  than  any  driven 
by  man  or  beast. 

THE  FEDERAL  CONSTITUTION 

When  the  people  of  America  at  last  recognized  that 
a  strong  Federal,  or  National,  Government  was  needed, 
it  was  decided  that  a  meeting  should  be  held  in  Phila- 


222  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

delphia  for  the  purpose  of  planning  and  writing  out  a 
national  Constitution,  that  is,  a  document  describing 
the  nature  and  powers  of  the  new  National  Government. 
Fifty-five  delegates  were  chosen  from  all  parts  of  the 
country.  These  included  George  Washington  and 
Benjamin  Franklin,  perhaps  the  two  greatest  men  in 
America  at  this  time. 

George  Washington  was  the  natural  leader  among 
the  delegates.  In  the  presence  of  his  dignity  and  his 
native  strength,  the  lesser  men  around  him  caught 
some  sense  of  the  greatness  and  sacredness  of  their 
task.  Benjamin  Franklin  had  political  wisdom,  a 
shrewd  knowledge  of  human  nature,  and  a  saving 
sense  of  humor. 

For  several  months,  the  delegates  met  every  day  in 
the  State  House  at  Philadelphia,  behind  closed  doors. 
The  document  they  planned  and  wrote  has  been  called 
"the  most  wonderful  work  ever  struck  off  at  a  given 
moment  by  the  brain  and  purpose  of  man."  The 
delegates  worked  for  many  months,  and  they  often 
felt  very  weary  and  discouraged.  Sometimes,  when  the 
difficulties  seemed  impossible  to  overcome,  when  the 
speakers  had  grown  hoarse  with  weariness  and  bitter- 
ness, Benjamin  Franklin  would  make  some  homely, 
witty  remark  that  would  cause  a  great  outburst  of 
laughter,  and  cleanse  the  air  for  a  good-natured  settle- 
ment of  the  dispute. 

It  was  decided  that  there  should  be  a  President  of 
the  United  States,  elected  indirectly  by  the  people 
for  a  term  of  four  years. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION      223 

There  was  to  be  a  lawmaking  body  called  Congress. 
Upon  this  matter  the  delegates  argued  for  weeks  and 
weeks.  The  little  states  wanted  to  be  represented  equal- 
ly with  the  big  states.  But  the  big  states  claimed  that 
they  ought  to  have  more  representatives  because  they 
had  more  population.  At  first  there  seemed  no  way  out 
of  the  difficulty,  but  at  last  Franklin  saved  the  day  by 
remarking,  "When  a  joiner  wishes  to  fit  two  boards, 
he  sometimes  cuts  off  a  bit  from  both."  His  suggestion 
was  acted  upon.  A  compromise  was  made,  a  half-way 
settlement,  as  it  were,  between  the  wishes  of  both  sides. 
It  was  decided  that  there  should  be  two  Houses  of 
Congress,  one  to  suit  the  wishes  of  the  smaller  states, 
the  other  to  suit  the  wishes  of  the  larger  states.  In  the 
Upper  House,  to  be  called  the  Senate,  the  states  were 
to  be  equal,  each  electing  two  Senators.  In  the  Lower 
House,  or  House  of  Representatives,  the  number  of 
representatives  to  be  elected  from  each  state  was  to 
be  determined  according  to  population.  There  was  to 
be  a  Supreme  Court  of  Justice,  to  judge  cases  con- 
cerning the  general  interests  of  the  nation  and  to  in- 
terpret the  laws.  The  government  thus  set  up  was 
called  the  Federal,  or  National,  Government,  and  was 
to  have  power  to  pass  laws,  raise  taxes,  regulate  trade, 
and  keep  up  an  army  and  navy.  The  Northwest  Ter- 
ritory was  to  remain  under  the  control  of  the  National 
Government,  but  if  any  part  of  it  became  well  devel- 
oped and  settled  in  the  future,  it  might  demand  a 
state  constitution.  The  state  governments  were  to 
continue  with  full  power  over  their  own  local  affairs. 


THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION       225 

Each  state  was  represented  on  the  American  flag  by  a 
star.  At  this  time  there  were  only  thirteen  stars.  It 
was  decided  that  a  place  must  be  chosen  for  the  resi- 
dence of  the  President  and  the  houses  of  Congress. 

When  the  Federal  Constitution  was  finished  and 
written  down,  many  of  the  delegates  were  not  satisfied 
with  it,  but  Benjamin  Franklin  urged  them  to  sign  it, 
even  though  they  felt  that  it  was  not  perfect  in  every 
detail.  "I  once  met  a  French  lady,"  he  said,  "who 
told  me  that  after  a  long  life  in  this  world,  she  had  dis- 
covered that  she  herself  was  the  only  person  who  had 
always  been  right — in  her  own  opinion." 

It  was  decided  that  the  Constitution,  being  imperfect, 
might  be  changed,  or  amended,  in  the  future,  if  two 
thirds  of  the  national  Congress  so  desired,  and  if  three 
quarters  of  the  states  were  willing  to  accept  the  change, 
or  amendment. 

When  all  was  over,  and  the  meeting  was  breaking 
up,  George  Washington  sat  silent,  with  his  head  bent 
low,  in  the  presidential  chair.  This  was  a  quaint  old- 
fashioned,  high-backed  armchair,  with  a  half  sun 
painted  in  bright  gold  upon  its  headrest.  Franklin 
went  up  to  Washington  and  said,  "As  I  have  been 
sitting  here  all  these  weeks,  I  have  often  wondered 
whether  that  sun  is  rising  or  setting.  But  now  I 
know  that  it  is  a  rising  sun/' 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  After  the  American  Revolution,  the 
colonies  became  independent  states,  and  a  Federal  Government 
was  established.  How  was  all  this  accomplished? 


226          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Was  the  school  in  Warrenton  a  public  or  a  private  school? 

2.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  minuteman  and  a  regular 
soldier? 

3.  Explain  the  causes  of  the  Revolution. 

4.  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  "No  Taxation  With- 
out Representation?" 

5.  Who  were  the  Tories? 

6.  What  is  a  state  constitution? 

7.  Describe  the  Continental  Congress. 

8.  What  do  you  think  were  the  effects  of  a  Puritan  upbringing 
on  Jonathan's  character? 

9.  What  was  the  chief  weakness  of  the  Continental  Congress? 

10.  Explain  the  difference  of  opinion  between  the  Federalists 
and  the  Anti-Federalists. 

11.  How  much  did  Jonathan  pay  per  acre  for  his  land  in  the 
West? 

12.  What  is  the  National,  or  Federal,  Constitution? 

13.  Why  are  there  two  Houses  of  Congress  in  Washington? 


CHAPTER  X 

AMERICA  TO-DAY 

1.  THE  WINNING  OF  THE  WEST 

2.  THE  HOME  LIFE  OF  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT 

Now  we  must  let  our  imagination  sweep  over  more  than 
a  hundred  years,  from  the  time  of  the  writing  of  the 
Constitution  to  the  present  day.  If  we  could  witness  the 
Westward  Movement  across  America,  the  building  of  the 
railroads,  and  the  growth  of  our  great  cities,  the  rapid 
development  of  our  country  would  seem  almost  a  miracle. 

THE  WINNING  OF  THE  WEST 

Beginning  with  short  journeys,  like  the  journey  of 
Jonathan  and  Rachel  Hale,  the  pioneer  farmers  moved 
westward.  Forests  were  cut  and  cleared,  herds  of 
buffalo  on  the  prairie  were  shot  down,  and  broad  fields 
were  cultivated.  After  the  first  farmhouses  were  built, 
appeared  the  little  red  schoolhouses  where  the  farmers' 
children  learned  their  lessons. 

New  farms  were  built  farther  and  farther  to  the 
westward  across  the  great  prairie,  and  pioneers  explored 
the  desert  lands  beyond,  until,  at  last,  on  the  horizon, 
appeared  the  faint  blue  peaks  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
snow-flecked,  and  shimmering  with  their  strange  frosty 
light.  A  line  of  caravans  succeeded  in  crossing  the 

227 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  229 

mountains  and  reached  the  Great  Salt  Lake  that  lies 
beyond.  Then,  after  all  the  droughts  and  blizzards  of 
the  prairie,  the  pioneers  found  California,  a  beautiful 
region,  with  snow-covered  peaks,  and  green  valleys 
shaded  with  groves  of  giant  trees.  In  California,  so  it 


CHICAGO  IN  1834 


seems,  all  the  fruits  of  the  earth  can  be  raised  in  plenty 
—acres  of  wheat,  acres  of  roses  and  poppies,  orchards 
of  peaches,  oranges,  and  almonds. 

Whenever  a  group  of  western  settlers  built  their 
houses  close  together  around  a  successful  lumber  mill  or 
a  mining  camp,  they  would  soon  begin  to  feel  the  need 
of  city  conveniences:  paved  sidewalks,  good  roads,  a 


230 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


water  supply,  and  so  forth.  If  the  people  were  willing 
to  join  together  and  pay  city  taxes,  then  they  would 
organize  a  city  government  to  look  after  these  matters. 
So  the  Western  cities  grew  and  multiplied. 

When  a  territory  of  the  West  became  well  settled 
with  many  cities,  the  Westerners  would  wish  to  live 


CHICAGO  AS  IT  IS  TO-DAY 

This  shows  part  of  Michigan  Boulevard,  Chicago's  most  noted  street. 

under  state  laws  of  their  own  making.  At  the  beginning, 
the  western  territories  were  under  the  guardianship  of 
the  Federal  Government;  they  were,  in  a  sense,  the 
children  of  the  nation.  But,  as  soon  as  they  grew  up, 
their  guardian  was  ready  to  give  them  independence 
and  the  control  of  their  own  riches.  The  people  would 
demand  a  state  government  and  a  written  state  con- 
stitution. So  the  new  states  developed  throughout  the 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  231 

West,  each  obtaining  self-government  when  the  proper 
time  came.  Now  there  are  forty-eight  states  in  the 
Union,  instead  of  only  thirteen,  as  at  the  time  of  the 
Revolution. 

While  the  western  pioneers  were  subduing  the  wilder- 
ness, shiploads  of  immigrants  were  pouring  into  America 
from  all  the  countries  of  Europe,  and  so  the  population 
increased.  At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  there  were 
less  than  three  million  people  in  the  United  States. 
Now  at  the  beginning  of  the  twentieth  century,  there 
are  a  hundred  and  five  million. 

Higher  wages  are  paid  in  the  United  States  than  in 
the  European  countries,  and  so  the  poor  of  Europe  have 
flocked  to  America — the  poor,  the  homeless,  the  tired, 
the  adventurer,  and  the  idealist  have  found  here  new 
strength,  new  life,  and  new  opportunity.  Irishmen, 
Scotchmen,  Germans,  Jews,  Russians,  Norwegians, 
Swedes,  Italians,  Greeks,  Armenians,  and  Slavs  stand 
shoulder  to  shoulder  in  American  factories,  so  that  the 
United  States  of  to-day  is  not  merely  a  nation,  but  a 
"  nation  of  nations."  It  is  the  poverty  of  Europe 
that  has  built  up  the  richest  nation  in  the  world. 

Many  of  these  immigrants  come  to  America  dreaming 
of  a  free  country,  and  their  hopes  are  welcomed  in  New 
York  Harbor  by  the  Statue  of  Liberty  holding  high 
her  torch.  After  they  have  been  "  naturalized,"  they 
become  American  citizens  and  help  to  uphold  the  pure 
principles  of  democracy  which  were  founded  by  those 
earlier  immigrants,  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  and  which  are 
always  in  danger  of  attack.  After  all,  every  one  in 


232 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


America  is  either  an  immigrant  or  the  descendant 
of  an  immigrant.  Even  the  Indians,  so  historians 
now  believe,  are  descended  from  men  who  migrated 

,    from  Asia. 

All  over  the 
country,  great 
cities  have  risen 
up  with  their 
skyscrapers  and 
smokes  tacks; 
their  roaring, 
crowded  streets; 
and  their  factories 
whirring  with  ma- 
chinery. 

The  develop- 
ment of  industry 
and  science  in 
America  and 
throughout  the 
world  in  the  last 
century  has  been 
extraordinary. 
American  work- 
men of  to-day, 
instead  of  using 
their  own  muscles,  use  engines  and  locomotives  of  tre- 
mendous driving  power.  Instead  of  using  their  eyes 
and  ears  unaided,  they  use  delicate  instruments  that 
are  a  thousand  times  more  sensitive  and  reliable,  such 


IMMIGRANTS  OF  TO-DAY 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  233 

as  microscopes,  telescopes,  and  the  apparatus  of  wire- 
less telegraphy. 

The  United  States  has  become  not  only  the  richest 
nation  in  the  world,  but  one  of  the  most  powerful.  The 
work  of  the  government  has  increased  with  the  nation. 
The  expenses  of  the  Federal,  or  National,  Government 
in  1791  were  three  million  dollars;  now,  even  in  peace 
times,  its  expenses  require  four  billion  dollars  a  year, 
which  means  a  thousandfold  increase. 


THE  HOME  LIFE  OF  THEODORE  ROOSEVELT 

President  Roosevelt,  one  of  our  greatest  chieftains  of 
modern  times,  was  a  strong  upholder  of  true  Americanism. 
Perhaps  he  never  felt  more  proud  than  when  the  sailors 
on  board  a  United  States  warship  gave  three  cheers  for 
''  Theodore  Roosevelt,  a  typical  American  citizen.'9 

He  brought  up  his  children  according  to  American 
ideals,  and  his  description  of  family  life  in  the  Roosevelt 
country  home,  Sagamore  Hill,  Long  Island,  is  typical  of 
the  best  in  American  home  life  of  to-day.  He  believed  that 
children  should  be  free  and  happy,  and  that  they  should  be 
out  of  doors  as  much  as  possible.  The  following  is  an 
extract  from  Roosevelt9 s  autobiography:1 

Sagamore  Hill  takes  its  name  from  the  old  Sagamore 
Mohannis,  who,  as  chief  of  his  little  tribe,  signed  away 
his  rights  to  the  land  two  centuries  and  a  half  ago.  The 

1This  selection  from  Theodore  Roosevelt:  An  Autobiography  is  used 
through  the  courtesy  of  the  publishers,  Charles  Scribner's  Sons. 


234 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


house  stands  right  on  the  top  of  the  hill,  separated  by 
fields  and  belts  of  woodland  from  all  other  houses,  and 
looks  out  over  the  bay  and  the  Sound.  We  see  the  sun 
go  down  beyond  long  reaches  of  land  and  water.  Many 


SAGAMORE  HILL 


birds  dwell  in  the  trees  round  the  house  or  in  the  pas- 
tures and  the  woods  nearby,  and  of  course  in  winter 
gulls,  loons  and  wild  fowl  frequent  the  waters  of  the 
bay  and  the  Sound.  .  .  . 

At  Sagamore  Hill  we  love  a  great  many  things — birds 
and  trees  and  books,  and  all  things  beautiful,  and  horses 
and  rifles  and  children  and  hard  work  and  the  joy  of 
life.  We  have  great  fire  places,  and  in  them  the  logs 


AMERICA  TO-DAY 


235 


roar  and  crackle  during  the  long  winter  evenings.   The 
big  piazza  is  for  the  hot,  still  afternoons  of  summer. 

.  .  .  The  books  are  everywhere.    There  are  as  many 
in  the  north  room  and  in  the  parlor — is  drawing  room 


THE  LIBRARY  AT  SAGAMORE  HILL 


a  more  appropriate  name  than  parlor? — as  in  the  li- 
brary; the  gunroom  at  the  top  of  the  house,  which 
incidentally  has  the  loveliest  view  of  all,  contains  more 
books  than  any  of  the  other  rooms;  and  they  are 
particularly  delightful  books  to  browse  among. 

Books  are  all  very  well  in  their  way,  and  we  love 
them  at  Sagamore  Hill;  but  children  are  better  than 
books,  Sagamore  Hill  is  one  of  three  neighboring 


236          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

houses  in  which  small  cousins  spent  very  happy  years 
of  childhood.  In  the  three  houses  there  were  at  one 
time  sixteen  of  these  small  cousins,  all  told,  and  once 
we  ranged  them  in  order  of  size  and  took  their 
photograph.  .  .  . 

When  their  mother  and  I  returned  from  a  row,  we 
would  often  see  the  children  waiting  for  us,  running 
like  sand-spiders  along  the  beach.  They  always  liked 
to  swim  in  company  with  a  grown-up  of  buoyant 
temperament  and  inventive  mind,  and  the  float  offered 
limitless  opportunities  for  enjoyment  while  bathing. 
All  dutiful  parents  know  the  game  of  "stage-coach"; 
each  child  is  given  a  name,  such  as  the  whip,  the  nigh 
leader,  the  off  wheeler,  the  old  lady  passenger,  and, 
under  penalty  of  paying  a  forfeit,  must  get  up  and  turn 
round  when  the  grown-up,  who  is  improvising  a  thrilling 
story,  mentions  that  particular  object;  and  when  the 
word  "stage-coach"  is  mentioned,  everybody  has  to 
get  up  and  turn  round.  Well,  we  used  to  play  stage- 
coach on  the  float  while  in  swimming,  and  instead  of 
tamely  getting  up  and  turning  round,  the  child  whose 
turn  it  was  had  to  plunge  overboard.  When  I  men- 
tioned "stage-coach,"  the  water  fairly  foamed  with 
vigorously  kicking  little  legs;  and  then  there  was 
always  a  moment  of  interest  while  I  counted,  so  as 
to  be  sure  that  the  number  of  heads  that  came  up 
corresponded  with  the  number  of  children  who  had 
gone  under.  .  .  . 

There  could  be  no  healthier  and  pleasanter  place  in 
which  to  bring  up  children  than  in  the  nook  of  old-time 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  237 

America  around  Sagamore  Hill.  Certainly  I  never  knew 
small  people  to  have  a  better  time  or  a  better  training 
for  their  work  in  after-life  than  the  three  families  of 
cousins  at  Sagamore  Hill.  It  was  real  country,  and— 
speaking  from  the  somewhat  detached  point  of  view  of 
the  masculine  parent — I  should  say  there  was  just  the 
proper  mixture  of  freedom  and  control  in  the  manage- 
ment of  the  children.  They  were  never  allowed  to  be 
disobedient  or  to  shirk  lessons  or  work;  and  they  were 
encouraged  to  have  all  the  fun  possible.  They  often 
went  barefoot,  especially  during  the  many  hours  passed 
in  various  enthralling  pursuits  along  and  in  the  waters 
of  the  bay.  They  swam,  they  tramped,  they  boated, 
they  coasted  and  skated  in  winter,  they  were  intimate 
friends  with  the  cows,  chickens,  pigs  and  other  live 
stock.  They  had  in  succession  two  ponies,  General 
Grant  and,  when  the  General's  legs  became  such  that 
he  lay  down  too  often  and  too  unexpectedly  in  the  road, 
a  calico  pony  named  Algonquin,  who  is  still  living  a 
life  of  honorable  leisure  in  the  stable  and  the  pasture- 
where  he  has  to  be  picketed,  because  otherwise  he  chases 
the  cows.  Sedate  pony  Grant  used  to  draw  the  cart  in 
which  the  children  went  driving  when  they  were  very 
small,  the  driver  being  their  old  nurse  Mame,  who 
had  held  their  mother  in  her  arms  when  she  was  born, 
and  who  was  knit  to  them  by  a  tie  as  close  as  any  tie 
of  blood.  I  doubt  whether  I  ever  saw  Mame  really 
offended  with  them  except  once  when,  out  of  pure  but 
misunderstood  affection,  they  named  a  pig  after  her. 
They  loved  pony  Grant.  Once  I  saw  the  then  little  boy 


238          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

of  three  hugging  pony  Grant's  forelegs.  As  he  leaned 
over  his  broad  straw  hat  tilted  on  end,  and  pony 
Grant  meditatively  munched  the  brim;  whereupon  the 
small  boy  looked  up  with  a  wail  of  anguish,  evidently 
thinking  the  pony  had  decided  to  treat  him  like  a 
radish.  .  .  . 

One  of  the  stand-bys  for  enjoyment,  especially  in 
rainy  weather,  was  the  old  barn.  This  had  been  built 
nearly  a  century  previously,  and  was  as  delightful  as 
only  the  pleasantest  kind  of  old  barn  can  be.  It  stood 
at  the  meeting-spot  of  three  fences.  A  favorite  amuse- 
ment used  to  be  an  obstacle  race.  The  contestants  were 
timed  and  were  started  successively  from  outside  the 
door.  When  they  were  little,  their  respective  fathers 
were  expected  also  to  take  part  in  the  obstacle  race, 
and  when  with  the  advance  of  years  the  fathers  finally 
refused  to  be  contestants,  there  was  a  feeling  of  pained 
regret  among  the  children  at  such  a  decline  in  the 
sporting  spirit.  .  .  . 

As  soon  as  the  little  boys  learned  to  swim  they  were 
allowed  to  go  off  by  themselves  in  rowboats  and  camp 
out  for  the  night  along  the  Sound.  Sometimes  I  would 
go  along  so  as  to  take  the  smaller  children.  Once  a 
schooner  was  wrecked  on  a  point  half  a  dozen  miles 
away.  She  held  together  well  for  a  season  or  two  after 
having  been  cleared  of  everything  down  to  the  timbers, 
and  this  gave  us  the  chance  to  make  camping  trips  in 
which  the  girls  could  also  be  included,  for  we  put  them 
to  sleep  in  the  wreck,  while  the  boys  slept  on  the  shore; 
squaw  picnics,  the  children  called  them. 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  239 

My  children,  when  young,  went  to  the  public  school 
near  us,  the  little  Cove  School,  as  it  is  called.  For 
nearly  thirty  years  we  have  given  the  Christmas  tree 
to  the  school.  Before  the  gifts  are  distributed,  I  am 
expected  to  make  an  address,  which  is  always  mercifully 
short,  my  own  children  having  impressed  upon  me  with 
frank  sincerity  the  attitude  of  other  children  to  ad- 
dresses of  this  kind  on  such  occasions.  There  are  of 
course  performances  by  the  children  themselves,  while 
all  of  us  parents  look  admiringly  on,  each  sympathizing 
with  his  or  her  particular  offspring  in  the  somewhat 
wooden  recital  of  "Darius  Green  and  his  Flying 
Machine,"  or  "The  Mountain  and  the  Squirrel  had  a 
Quarrel."  But  the  tree  and  the  gifts  make  up  for  all 
shortcomings.  .  .  . 

As  for  the  education  of  the  children,  there  was  of 
course  much  of  it  that  represented  downright  hard  work 
and  drudgery.  There  was  also  much  training  that  came 
as  a  by-product  and  was  perhaps  almost  as  valuable — 
not  as  a  substitute  but  as  an  addition, .  After  their  supper, 
the  children,  when  little,  would  come, t lotting  up  to  thejr 
mother's  room  to  be  read  to,  and  it  was  always  a  sufprise 
to  me  to  notice  the  extremely  varied  reading  which 
interested  them,  from  Howard  Pyle's  "Robin  Hood," 
Mary  Alicia  Owen's  "  Voodoo  Tales,"  and  Joel  Chandler 
Harris's  "Aaron  in  the  Wild  Woods,"  to  "Lycidas" 
and  "  King  John."  If  their  mother  was  absent,  I 
would  try  to  act  as  vice-mother — a  poor  substitute,  I 
fear — superintending  the  supper  and  reading  aloud 
afterwards.  The  children  did  not  wish  me  to  read  the 


240 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


THREE  GENERATIONS  OF  ROOSEVELTS 

books  they  desired  their  mother  to  read,  and  I  usually 
took  some  such  book  as  "Hereward  the  Wake/'  or 
"Guy  Mannering,"  or  "The  Last  of  the  Mohicans," 
or  else  some  story  about  a  man-eating  tiger,  or  a 
man-eating  lion,  from  one  of  the  hunting  books  in 
my  library.  .  .  . 


AMERICA  TO-DAY  241 

As  the  children  grew  up,  Sagamore  Hill  remained 
delightful  for  them.  There  were  picnics  and  riding 
parties,  there  were  dances  in  the  north  room — sometimes 
fancy  dress  dances — and  open-air  plays  on  the  green 
tennis  court  of  one  of  the  cousin's  houses.  The  children 
are  no  longer  children  now.  Most  of  them  are  men  and 
women,  working  out  their  own  fates  in  the  big  world; 
some  in  our  own  land,  others  across  the  great  oceans  or 
where  the  Southern  Cross  blazes  in  the  tropic  nights. 
Some  of  them  have  children  of  their  own;  some  are 
working  at  one  thing,  some  at  another;  in  cable  ships, 
in  business  offices,  in  factories,  in  newspaper  offices, 
building  steel  bridges,  bossing  gravel  trains  and  steam 
shovels,  or  laying  tracks  and  superintending  freight  traf- 
fic. They  have  had  their  share  of  accidents  and  escapes; 
as  I  write,  word  comes  from  a  far-off  land  that  one  of 
them,  whom  Seth  Bullock  used  to  call  "  Kim  "  because  he 
was  the  friend  of  all  mankind,  while  bossing  a  dangerous 
but  necessary  steel  structural  job  has  had  two  ribs  and 
two  back  teeth  broken,  and  is  back  at  work.  They  have 
known  and  they  will  know  joy  and  sorrow,  triumph 
and  temporary  defeat.  But  I  believe  they  are  all  the 
better  off  because  of  their  happy  and  healthy  childhood. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:     The  pioneer  spirit. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  do  you  know  about  the  history  of  your  own  state? 

2.  If  you  live  in  a  city,  find  out  when  and   how  it  was  first 
settled. 


242          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

3.  Have  you  any  relatives  who  settled  in  the  West  during  the 
last  fifty  years?   If  so,  what  was  their  reason? 

4.  If  your  parents  or  grandparents  were  immigrants,  find  out 
what  was  their  reason  for  coming  to  America. 

5.  Do  you  think  it  is  good  for  children  to  be  brought  up  to 
hard  work,  and  according  to  very  strict  rules  of  conduct,  like 
Jonathan  Hale,  or  do  you  believe  in  the  freer  home  life  of  modern 
American  children?   Give  your  reasons. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT 

1.  WASHINGTON — A  VISIT  TO  THE  WHITE  HOUSE 

2.  THE  CAPITOL 

3.  THE  GOVERNMENT  DEPARTMENTS 

In  order  to  understand  our  American  government  of 
to-day,  we  must  study  the  National  Government  in  Wash- 
ington, and  also  the  government  of  the  states,  the  cities, 
and  the  counties.  Let  us  first  imagine  that  we  are  taking  a 
trip  to  the  city  of  Washington. 

WASHINGTON — A  VISIT  TO  THE  WHITE  HOUSE 

As  our  train  approaches  the  Union  Station,  we  catch 
vague  glimpses  in  the  early  morning  mist  of  a  huge, 
white,  dreamy  dome,  and  some  distance  away,  of  a  slen- 
der white  shaft,  very  tall,  rising  out  of  a  sea  of  tree  tops. 
The  dome  is  the  dome  of  the  National  Capitol,  and  the 
slender  shaft  is  the  shaft  of  the  Washington  Monument. 

A  hundred  years  ago  Washington  was  called  "A  city 
of  miserable  huts."  Now  it  is  the  most  beautiful  city 
in  the  United  States.  It  is  a  big  peaceful  city,  with 
shining  white  houses,  and  long  broad  avenues  shaded 
with  fine  trees. 

We  get  into  a  taxi  and  ride  quickly ;  to  014 r'ho't^s 
passing  some  of  the  government  buildings  on  the  way. 

243 


THE  NATIONAL,  GOVERNMENT        245 

They  are  huge  blocks  of  white  stone,  with  rows  of 
pillars,  like  those  of  the  old  temples  of  Athens.  As  soon 
as  we  have  unpacked  our  grips  at  the  hotel,  we  go  out 
to  see  the  sights.  We  are  told  that  the  White  House, 
the  residence  of  the  President,  is  open  from  ten  in  the 
morning  until  two  in  the  afternoon,  and  we  decide  to 
spend  the  morning  visiting  the  White  House. 

As  we  walk  along  the  pleasant  shaded  streets,  the 
first  government  building  we  see  is  the  great  Capitol,  a 
huge  pile  of  white  pillars  and  walls  with  a  magnificent 
dome  as  its  crowning  glory.  It  is  here  that  the  laws  of 
the  nation  are  made  by  our  Senators  and  Congressmen. 
The  Capitol  is  the  grandest  building  in  Washington  and 
one  of  the  stateliest  in  all  the  world. 

Skirting  around  the  Capitol,  we  come  into  a  green 
park  and  pass  by  a  number  of  other  government  build- 
ings before  we  turn  to  the  right  in  the  direction  of  the 
White  House.  In  some  places  we  can  see  stonemasons 
and  carpenters  at  work,  for  Washington  is  still  a  city  of 
the  future,  and  plans  have  been  made  for  a  great  many 
new  government  buildings. 

Our  first  impression  of  the  White  House  is  of  a 
beautiful  home,  like  a  small  palace,  shining  out  daz- 
zlingly  white  from  among  smooth  green  lawns  and  big 
trees.  It  is  built  somewhat  in  the  style  of  the  early 
Colonial  homes,  with  Greek  pillars  in  front  of  the 
main  doorway. 

Before  going  in,  we  take  a  stroll  around  the  grounds. 
There  is  a  fountain  with  an  apple  tree  near-by.  For  a 
minute  or  two  we  sit  under  the  shade  of  the  apple  tree 


246 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


and  look  at  the  bright  flowers  and  at  the  play  of  the 
water  in  the  sunlight.  In  the  big  linden  trees  a  pair  of 
warbling  vireos  are  singing  lustily.  The  magnolias  are 
in  bloom  and  the  scent  of  the  jasmine  on  the  porch  of 
the  White  House  is  wafted  to  us.  The  garden  is  beauti- 


THE  WHITE  HOUSE  AS  SEEN  FROM  AN  AIRPLANE 

ful,  and  we  can  imagine  that  it  is  a  delightful  resting 
place  for  a  tired  and  overworked  President. 

Then  we  come  back  to  the  main  entrance  of  the  White 
House  and  show  a  special  card,  with  an  introduction 
written  by  one  of  the  Senators  from  our  state. 

We  are  led  through  a  number  of  big  rooms,  which  are 
richly  furnished  and  decorated  with  tall  vases  filled 
with  hothouse  flowers.  When  we  finally  reach  the 
famous  East  Room,  a  big  reception  hall,  we  find  it 
filled  with  callers  who  wish  to  shake  hands  with  the 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        247 

President.  The  East  Room  is  an  immense  place,  with 
magnificent  crystal  chandeliers  hanging  from  the  ceiling. 
When  these  are  all  lit  up  on  the  night  of  a  banquet,  the 
effect  must  be  wonderfully  gay  and  brilliant. 

The  President  is  standing  at  the  far  end  of  the  room. 
We  look  at  him  with  great  respect,  for  we  are  Ameri- 
cans, and  we  feel  that  there  is  no  higher  office  and  no 
greater  responsibility  in  the  world  than  that  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States. 

The  chief  usher  is  introducing  some  of  the  visitors 
by  name.  There  are  streams  and  streams  of  visitors- 
people  like  ourselves  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  from 
New  York,  from  Nebraska,  from  California;  and  for- 
eigners from  many  different  countries,  from  England, 
from  Belgium,  from  France,  even  from  China  and  Japan. 

When  our  turn  comes,  we  tell  the  President  our 
names,  and  he  shakes  hands  with  us. 

Some  of  the  Presidents  do  not  enjoy  these  public 
receptions,  but  President  Lincoln  liked  to  meet  with 
simple  country  folk  who  would  give  him  a  "God  bless 
you"  with  affection  and  admiration  shining  out  of 
their  eyes.  He  used  to  call  his  receptions  his  "public 
opinion  baths/'  The  interest  and  trust  of  the  com- 
mon people  made  him  forget  his  anxieties  for  a  mo- 
ment, and  gave  him  fresh  courage  to  go  on  with  his 
hard  work. 

After  we  have  shaken  hands  with  the  President,  we 
are  taken  to  see  the  office  where  he  works.  During 
Roosevelt's  term  a  new  wing  of  office  buildings  was 
added  to  the  White  House  and  several  other  changes 


248          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

were  made.  We  are  first  shown  busy  office  rooms  where 
the  staff  of  White  House  stenographers  are  hard  at 
work.  There  is  the  clicking  of  telegraph  instruments, 
the  hum  of  many  typewriters,  and  the  sharp  ring  of  the 
telephone.  Some  distance  away  is  a  quiet  room,  the 
President's  own  office,  and  we  are  taken  there  to  see 
the  very  table  at  which  he  sits  when  working. 

When  he  is  carrying  on  his  full  day's  work,  the 
President  is  an  exceedingly  busy  man.  President 
Roosevelt  has  described  a  day  at  the  White  House  in 
one  of  his  letters.  Every  morning,  in  the  summer,  he 
took  breakfast  with  Mrs.  Roosevelt  out  on  the  South 
Portico,  which  is  a  beautiful,  stately  porch  overgrown 
with  honeysuckle  and  jasmine.  After  breakfast  he 
strolled  about  the  garden  for  fifteen  or  twenty  minutes, 
looking  at  the  flowers  and  the  fountain  and  admiring 
the  trees.  Then  he  went  into  his  office  and  worked 
until  lunch  time.  He  usually  entertained  some  official 
people  at  lunch;  sometimes  Senators  or  ambassadors, 
sometimes  an  author,  a  prominent  business  man,  a  labor 
leader,  a  scientist,  or  a  big  game  hunter.  Immediately 
after  lunch  he  went  back  to  work,  and  worked  until 
five.  If  Mrs.  Roosevelt  wished  to  ride,  he  would  spend 
two  or  three  hours  with  her  on  horseback.  A  favorite 
ride  was  through  Rock  Creek  Park,  which  is  one  of 
Washington's  public  places.  After  dinner  he  was 
sometimes  free,  but  toward  the  end  of  his  term  as 
President  he  was  generally  busy  and  had  to  sit  up  late 
at  night  writing  messages  to  Congress  and  other  im- 
portant papers. 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        249 

There  is  a  tall  glass  vase  rilled  with  pink  carnations  on 
the  President's  table,  and  we  can  see  that  his  calendar  is 
scribbled  all  over  with  the  names  of  people  who  have 
appointments  with  him.  After  we  have  been  shown 
the  President's  own  work  table,  we  are  shown  the  big 
table  which  is  used  for  Cabinet  meetings.  The  Presi- 
dent appoints  a  number  of  well-known  men  to  be  the 
heads  of  the  big  Government  Departments  (which  we 
are  to  visit),  and  about  once  a  week  he  invites  these 
men,  who  are  called  the  members  of  his  Cabinet,  to 
the  White  House  for  a  Cabinet  meeting.  They  all  sit 
around  the  big  table  with  him  and  talk  over  the  affairs 
of  the  nation. 

Every  four  years  there  is  a  national  election,  at  which 
the  people  of  the  country  vote,  and  the  various  political 
parties  run  candidates  for  the  Presidency.  The  Presi- 
dent is  elected  for  a  term  of  four  years,  and  has  to  carry 
out  a  great  many  official  duties.  He  is  the  chief  official 
worker  of  the  nation,  and  is  given  a  salary  of  $75,000 
a  year. 

At  first,  he  is  kept  very  busy  making  appoint- 
ments; that  is,  choosing  good  men  to  carry  on  the  work 
of  the  Government  Departments.  He  has  the  grave 
responsibility  of  deciding  whether  or  not  to  sign  the 
bills  which  are  passed  by  Congress.  The  President  does 
not  always  agree  with  Congress.  If  he  wishes,  he  can 
refuse  to  sign  a  bill,1  in  which  case,  if  Congress  still 
wishes  to  make  it  a  law,  it  must  pass  the  bill  over 
again  by  a  big  majority,  a  two-thirds  vote. 

1  A  proposed  law,  before  it  is  finally  passed,  is  called  a  bill. 


250          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

The  President  is  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  our 
Army  and  Navy.  During  a  war  his  powers  are  very 
great  and  his  duties  very  heavy.  No  doubt  President 
Wilson's  breakdown  and  serious  illness  were  brought 
on  by  the  terrific  strain  of  the  Great  War. 

The  President  also  has  to  receive  foreign  ambassa- 
dors, and  he  has  the  power  to  make  treaties  with  foreign 
countries,  but  only  "with  the  advice  and  the  consent  of 
the  Senate/'  President  Wilson  went  to  Paris  and 
helped  to  write  the  Treaty  of  Peace  with  Germany  and 
the  constitution  of  the  League  of  Nations,  but  when 
he  came  back  to  America  he  was  unable  to  obtain  the 
consent  of  the  Senate,  so  that  America  did  not  sign  the 
Treaty  with  the  other  countries. 

This  is  only  a  short  outline  of  the-  duties  of  the 
President,  but  it  is  enough  to  show  us  that  he  must  be 
a  hardworking  man. 

As  we  are  leaving  the  White  House,  we  pass  through 
a  great  corridor  and  are  shown  the  pictures  of  past 
presidents  hanging  on  the  walls.  We  look  up  at  them 
with  great  respect,  but  our  guide  tells  us  that  they 
have  not  always  been  so  respectfully  treated.  One 
rainy  day  during  President  Roosevelt's  term,  his  small 
son  Quentin  invited  a  number  of  young  friends  to  play 
with  him,  including  Charlie  Taft,  the  son  of  President 
Taft.  The  little  boys  were  very  noisy  and  full  of  mis- 
chief, and  finally  they  chewed  wads  of  paper  and  threw 
them  at  the  portraits.  When  President  Roosevelt  later 
discovered  what  had  been  done,  he  hauled  young 
Quentin  out  of  bed  and  made  him  take  off  the  paper 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        251 


WASHINGTON'S  BEDROOM  AT  MOUNT  VERNON 

wads.  The  next  day  he  summoned  the  four  culprits  to 
come  before  him.  He  explained  to  them  that  they  had 
acted  like  boors,  and  then  stated  that  Quentin  could 
have  no  friends  to  see  him,  and  that  the  other  three 
were  not  to  come  inside  the  White  House  until  he  felt 
that  time  enough  had  passed  to  serve  as  a  punish- 
ment. They  were  four  very  sheepish  small  boys  when 
he  had  finished  his  reprimand. 

MOUNT  VERNON  AND  THE  CAPITOL 

That  same  afternoon  we  take  a  delightful  trip  in  a 
steamer  down  the  Potomac  River  to  visit  Mount  Ver- 
non,  the  beautiful  old  house  which  used  to  be  the  home 


252          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

of  George  Washington.  Everything  has  been  left 
exactly  as  it  was  when  Washington  died.  There  is  a 
quaint  garden,  still  carefully  tended,  with  old  box 
hedges  planted  by  Washington  himself,  and  prim,  old- 


MOUNT  VERNON 


fashioned  flowers  such  as  used  to  be  grown  there  in 
colonial  days.  Inside  the  house,  the  furniture  is  just  as 
it  used  to  be.  Nothing  has  been  moved  away.  We  can 
see  the  mahogany  chairs  in  which  Washington  used 
to  sit,  and  the  big  four-posted  bed  in  which  he  used 
to  sleep. 

The  house  is  situated  on  a  high  hill  which  slopes  down 
gently  toward  the  shores  of  the  Potomac.    We  go  out 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        253 

to  the  porch,  and,  as  we  stand  there  for  a  moment, 
we  have  a  sweeping  view  over  the  fairest  of  landscapes. 
We  look  down  on  the  shining,  splendid  river  and  over 
hills  forested  with  quiet  shadowy  trees,  where  the  deer 
wander  in  herds.  This  is  the  view  upon  which  Wash- 
ington's eyes  used  to  rest,  and  like  himself  it  is  calm, 
silent,  stately,  and  dignified.  At  Mount  Vernon  we  are 
carried  back  over  a  hundred  years  to  the  time  when 
our  Constitution  was  first  written. 

The  next  morning,  we  plan  to  visit  the  Capitol,  and 
see  how  our  laws  are  made. 

Our  laws  are  made  by  our  Representatives  and 
Senators,  whom  we  ourselves  elect  at  the  national 
elections.  The  Representatives  meet  in  a  big  hall  called 
the  House  of  Representatives,  which  is  in  the  south 
wing  of  the  Capitol,  and  the  Senators  meet  in  the 
Senate  Chamber,  which  is  in  the  north  wing. 

Before  starting  out  from  the  hotel,  we  ring  up  on 
the  telephone  the  Congressman  from  our  district,  and 
he  arranges  to  meet  us  on  the  steps  of  the  Capitol.  He 
has  very  kindly  promised  to  show  us  over  the  building. 
He  is  always  kind  and  friendly  to  the  "folks  from  back 
home,"  as  he  calls  us  who  live  in  his  district.  The 
United  States  is  divided  up  into  districts,  each  contain- 
ing about  212,000  people,  and  one  Representative  is 
elected  from  every  district. 

When  we  meet  our  friend,  we  go  inside  the  Capitol 
building,  and  find  that  it  is  crowded  with  visitors. 
Passing  through  a  hall  which  is  full  of  statues,  we 
come  to  the  House  of  Representatives.  The  lawmakers 


254          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

are  assembled,  so  we  cannot  go  down  on  the  main  floor; 
we  must  go  up  with  the  crowd  into  the  visitors'  gallery. 

Here  we  look  down  upon  a  huge  hall,  something  like 
a  concert  hall.  There  are  rows  and  rows  of  benches 
which  run  in  a  half  circle  around  a  platform,  on  which 
is  placed  a  marble  seat,  the  seat  of  the  Speaker.  The 
Speaker  is  the  most  important  person  in  the  house,  and 
it  is  his  business  to  see  that  all  Congressional  business 
is  conducted  in  an  orderly  fashion. 

The  Congressmen  seem  to  us  to  carry  on  their  work 
in  a  noisy  and  confused  manner.  There  is  a  buzz  of 
conversation,  and  men  are  walking  about  in  every 
direction.  A  clerk  sitting  below  the  Speaker  is  reading 
aloud  from  a  paper  in  a  singsong  voice.  No  one  pays 
any  attention  to  him,  and  we  are  surprised  to  be  told 
that  he  is  reading  the  title  of  a  bill.  When  the  hubbub 
is  at  its  loudest,  the  Speaker  strikes  the  top  of  his  desk 
with  a  heavy  mallet.  There  is  silence  for  a  moment, 
and  he  calls  out,  "The  House  will  be  in  order." 

At  this,  our  friend  asks  us  to  excuse  him  for  a  mo- 
ment. He  says  that  a  vote  is  going  to  be  taken,  and 
that  he  must  vote  with  his  party. 

While  he  is  gone,  there  is  more  confusion,  and  every- 
one seems  to  be  getting  up  or  sitting  down  again.  Then 
the  Speaker  again  hammers  his  desk,  and  calls  out  this 
time:  "The  ayes  have  it." 

Our  Congressman  comes  back  and  tells  us  that  a  bill 
has  just  been  passed.  The  House  has  voted  to  allow 
several  millions  of  dollars  to  one  of  the  Government 
Departments  which  we  are  to  visit  to-morrow. 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        255 

Our  Congressman,  as  we  have  said,  voted  with  his 
party.  The  members  of  the  House  are  divided  up 
into  the  two  big  parties,  the  Democrats  and  the  Repub- 
licans, and  they  sit  on  opposite  sides  of  the  House. 
We  ask  our  friend,  "What  makes  a  Republican,  and 
what  makes  a  Democrat?"  He  smiles,  but  refuses 
to  answer  directly.  He  says  that  the  two  parties 
are  constantly  taking  up  new  questions  and  chang- 
ing their  "platforms,"  so  that  it  is  difficult  to  say 
what  is  the  exact  difference  between  them.  When  a 
party  outlines  a  set  of  new  laws  which  it  wishes  to 
pass,  and  policies  which  it  endorses,  these  are  called  its 
"platform." 

We  now  leave  the  House  and  walk  back  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Senate  Chamber.  On  the  way,  we  pass  by 
the  Supreme  Court  Room.  Someone  is  coming  out,  the 
door  swings  noiselessly  open,  and  for  a  moment  we  can 
glance  in. 

The  Court  Room  is  filled  and  a  lawyer  is  arguing  his 
case.  Nine  grave-looking  judges,  in  black  silk  robes, 
are  seated  in  a  row.  These  are  the  Chief  Justice  and 
the  eight  Associate  Justices  of  the  United  States.  The 
lawyer  ceases  talking,  and  there  is  complete  silence. 
We  look  at  the  faces  of  the  Justices.  They  are  middle- 
aged  or  old  men,  and  several  of  them  have  white 
hair.  They  are  uncommonly  fine-looking,  and  seated 
there  in  the  black  flowing  robes  of  their  office,  they 
seem  like  the  symbols  of  dignity  and  authority.  This 
is  the  highest  court  in  the  country,  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States. 


256 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


The  door  is  closed,  and  we  move  away.  When  we 
reach  the  Senate  Chamber,  we  notice  that  it  is  much 
smaller  than  the  House  of  Representatives.  There  are 
fewer  Senators  than  there  are  Congressmen,  and  this 
is  because  the  Senators  are  elected  according  to  states, 


THE  SENATE  IN  SESSION 

only  two  from  each  state,  while  the  Congressmen  are 
elected  according  to  districts. 

The  Senate  Chamber  is  beautifully  decorated.  The 
seats  of  the  Senators  are  arranged  in  half  circles,  like 
the  benches  of  the  Congressmen,  but  each  Senator 
has  a  desk  which  is  made  of  polished  mahogany.  The 
chief  officer  of  the  Senate  is  the  Vice-President  of 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        257 

the  United  States,  and  he  sits  in  a  high-backed  chair 
and  presides. 

One  of  the  Senators,  who  has  a  bald  head,  is  making 
a  long  speech,  and  he  is  being  listened  to  with  great  at- 
tention by  all  the  others.  There  is  no  talking,  no  walk- 
ing to  and  fro.  The  Senate  has  always  had  the  habit 
of  grave  politeness  and  slow,  cool  deliberation.  The 
Senators,  on  the  whole,  are  older  men  than  the  Con- 
gressmen, and  their  position  is  more  dignified.  They 
are  elected  for  six  years,  while  the  Congressmen  are 
elected  for  only  two  years. 

THE  GOVERNMENT  DEPARTMENTS 

Our  next  two  days  are  very  busy,  strenuous  ones, 
spent  in  travelling  around  the  city  and  visiting  the 
Department  buildings.  The  Departments,  with  the 
President,  belong  to  the  working  branch  of  the  Govern- 
ment. They  carry  on  the  business  of  government,  and 
put  into  practice  the  laws  passed  by  Congress. 

The  Department  of  State  attends  to  our  business 
with  foreign  countries. 

The  Treasury  Department  attends  to  the  money 
affairs  of  the  Nation. 

The  War  and  Navy  Departments  have  charge  of 
our  Army  and  Navy. 

The  Post  Office  Department  directs  the  postal  system 
all  over  the  country. 

The  Department  of  the  Interior  attends  to  a  variety 
of  things — pensions  for  soldiers,  Indian  affairs,  the 


258          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

patent  department,  the  national  parks,  education, 
Alaska  and  the  territories,  the  vast  national  forests, 
and  national  engineering  work. 

The  Department  of  Agriculture  has  charge  of  the 
interests  of  the  farmers  of  the  United  States. 

The  Department  of  Commerce  attends  to  trade 
problems. 

The  Department  of  Labor  has  charge  of  the  interests 
of  wage  earners. 

The  first  building  that  we  enter  is  a  huge  grey 
granite  pile,  just  west  of  the  White  House,  which 
contains  the  central  offices  of  three  Departments,  the 
State,  War,  and  Navy  Departments. 

In  the  offices  of  the  War  and  Navy  Departments  we 
are  shown  some  maps,  dotted  over  with  little  flags, 
and  some  interesting  models  of  our  new  big  battle- 
ships. But  these  offices  give  us  very  little  idea  of  the 
work  of  our  Army  and  Navy,  so  we  spend  only  a  short 
time  in  them. 

We  pass  by  the  White  House  again,  and  find  on 
the  opposite  side  another  huge  granite  building,  the 
Treasury  Department.  An  old  guide  leads  us  down  to 
the  great  dark  basement  of  the  building,  where  vast 
hordes  of  money  are  stored  up.  Before  our  eyes  lie 
thousands  of  millions  of  dollars,  in  shining  new  coins 
and  crisp,  clean  dollar  bills.  Most  of  this  money  is 
locked  up  in  boxes  inside  big  steel  cages,  which  are 
guarded  night  and  day  by  armed  watchmen. 

The  guide  tells  us  that  at  present  the  Treasury  has  to 
raise  about  four  billions  of  dollars  a  year  in  taxes  to 


THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT        259 

pay  the  expenses  of  the  National  Government.  Almost 
all  of  this  huge  sum  is  spent  in  paying  for  wars,  past 
or  future.  If  the  nations  could  prevent  wars  in  the 
future,  it  would  mean  the  saving  of  vast  sums  of 
money. 

The  next  building  we  enter  is  that  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Interior.  Here  we  are  shown  a  fine  col- 
lection of  artistically  colored  photographs  which  have 
been  taken  in  the  National  Parks:  the  Yosemite, 
the  Yellowstone,  Glacier  Park,  and  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tain National  Park.  There  are  pictures  of  cool,  shady 
forests  and  giant  trees,  pictures  of  snowy  mountain 
ranges,  where  the  trout  streams  plunge  down  steep 
waterfalls  into  clear  blue  lakes,  and  pictures  of  wild 
flower  gardens,  brilliantly  colored,  where  the  bright 
blossoms  and  the  soft  green  grass  grow  close  up  against 
the  snow  banks  of  the  mountain  peaks.  The  air  in 
these  high  places  is  light  and  crystal  clear;  it  seems 
to  give  fresh  life  and  vigor  to  all  who  breathe  it.  The 
National  Parks  are  a  paradise  for  the  summer  visitor 
who  is  tired  out  by  the  heat  and  noise  of  the  big 
cities.  Let  us  hope  that  some  time  in  the  future 
railway  fares  will  be  so  cheap,  that  the  National 
Parks  can  be  a  summer  playground  for  poor  people  as 
well  as  rich. 

Then  we  visit  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  where 
we  are  shown  specimens  of  all  the  plants  and  fruits 
which  are  grown  by  the  farmers  of  our  country.  This 
Department  helps  the  farmers  to  produce  better  crops, 
and  it  also  organizes  the  country  children  all  over 


260          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  United  States  into  Corn  Clubs,  Baby  Beef  Clubs, 
and  Canning  Clubs,  which  are  arousing  great  enthu- 
siasm for  good  farming  among  boys  and  girls. 

The  last  Department  we  see  is  the  Department  of 
Labor.  The  office  in  this  department  which  most 
interests  us  is  the  Children's  Bureau,  because  the 
Children's  Bureau  is  working  for  child  welfare  and  the 
ideal  of  equal  opportunity  for  all  children.  Its  first 
care  is  the  health  of  children.  Under  its  guidance,  child 
welfare  work  is  being  started  all  over  the  country,  and 
the  care  of  good  doctors  and  nurses  is  being  provided 
free  of  charge.  A  little  leaflet  printed  by  the  Bureau 
describes  the  advantages  which  every  American  child 
ought  to  have.  Read  what  it  says: 

WHAT  DO  GROWING  CHILDREN  NEED? 

Child-welfare  experts  consider  the  following  necessary  for  the  child's 
best  growth  and  development. 

SHELTER. 

Decent,  clean,  well-kept  house. 

Plenty  of  fresh  air  in  the  house,  winter  and  summer. 

Warm  rooms  in  cold  weather. 

Separate  bed,  with  sufficient  bedclothes  to  keep  warm. 

Sanitary  indoor  water-closet  or  outdoor  privy. 

Pure,  abundant  water  supply. 

A  comfortable  place  to  welcome  friends. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

FOOD. 

Three  square  meals  a  day. 

Clean,  simple,  appetizing,  well-cooked  food. 

Meals  at  regular  hours  and  sufficient  time  for  them. 

Dinner  at  noon  for  children  under  7  years  of  age. 


THE  NATIONAL  (JOVERNMENT        261 

The  daily  diet  should  include: 
Milk,  at  least  1  pint  a  day. 
Cereal  and  bread. 

Green  vegetables,  especially  leafy  vegetables. 
Fruit. 

Egg,  meat,  or  fish.    If  no  one  of  these  three  is  used,  an  additional 
pint  of  milk  should  be  given. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

Every  Child  Has  the  Right  to  Be  Well  Born,  Well  Nourished,  and  Well 

Cared  for. 

CLOTHING. 

Clean,  whole  garments. 

Different  clothing  for  day  and  night,  suited  to  the  climate. 

Change  of  underclothes  and  nightgown  at  least  weekly. 

A  change  of  stockings  at  least  twice  a  week. 

Warm  underclothing  and  stockings  in  cold  climates. 

Heavy  coat,  cap,  and  mittens  for  cold  weather. 

Shoes,  free  from  holes,  and  long  and  wide  enough. 

Foot  protection  against  rain  or  snow. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

HEALTH  AND  PERSONAL  HABITS. 

Hands  and  face  washed  before  meals  and  at  bedtime. 

Bath  every  day,  or  at  least  once  a  week. 

Natural  bowel  movement  every  day. 

Teeth  brushed  at  least  twice  a  day  (morning  and  night). 

Regular  bed  hour. 

Ten  hours  of  sleep  at  night,  with  open  windows. 

Correct  weight  for  height. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

RECREATION  AND  COMPANIONSHIP. 

A  safe,  clean,  roomy  place  for  outdoor  and  indoor  play. 
At  least  two  hours  outdoor  play  every  day. 
Constructive  and  suitable  playthings  and  tools. 
Some  one  with  sympathetic  oversight  to  direct  the  play. 
The  right  sort  of  playmates. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

Wise  Parents  Are  a  Child's  Best  Asset. 


262          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

EDUCATION   AND   WORK. 

Schooling  for  at  least  nine  months  a  year  from  7  to  16  years  of  age. 
Not  more  than  two  hours  of  "chores'*  outside  school  hours. 
Not  enough  work  either  in  school  or  out  to  cause  fatigue. 
Vacation  work,  if  any,  must  allow  ample  opportunity  for  the  proper 
amount  of  rest  and  recreation. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 

RELIGION  AND  MORAL  TRAINING. 

Opportunity  for  religious  training. 

Proper  moral  and  spiritual  influence  in  home. 

Teaching  of  standards  of  right  and  wrong  in  daily  life. 

Has  Your  Child  These? 
Is  your  child  getting  a  square  deal? 
If  not,  what  are  you  going  to  do  about  it? 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  The  Government  of  the  United  States 
is  a  representative  democracy.  Show  that  you  know  just  what 
this  statement  means. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  do  you  know  about  the  President  now  in  office? 

2.  Describe  what  happens  at  a  national  election. 

3.  Explain  some  of  the  duties  of  the  President. 

4.  Explain  some  of  the  duties  of  National  Congressmen  and 
Senators. 

5.  What  is  meant  by  a  "party,"  and  a  "party  platform"? 

6.  If  you  have  ever  visited  a  National   Park,  describe  what 
you  saw. 

7.  If  you  have  lived  on  a  farm,  explain  how  a  farmer  can  be 
helped  in  his  work  by  government  experts. 

8.  Do  you  know   any  families  of  children  who   do  not  enjoy 
all  the  advantages  which,  according  to  the  Children's  Bureau,  all 
American  children  should  have?  If  so,  can  you  suggest  any  means 
of  helping  them  ? 

9.  Name  the  chief  Government  Departments  in  Washington. 
10.    Name    the    present    heads    of    these    Departments — the 

Cabinet  officers. 


CHAPTER  XII 

STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT 

1.  A  VISIT  TO  A  STATE  CAPITOL 

2.  A  STATE  UNIVERSITY 

3.  A  COUNTY  COURTHOUSE 

Now  that  we  have  seen  something  of  our  National 
Government,  we  are  going  to  see  how  a  state  government  is 
carried  on.  There  are  now  forty-eight  states  in  the  United 
States,  and  each  one  has  its  own  state  government.  In 
every  state,  a  city  has  been  chosen  as  the  capital,  and  in 
tli  is  city  a  big  government  building  has  been  erected, 
called  the  State  Capitol.  One  has  to  be  careful  not  to 
confuse  these  words,  capital  and  Capitol. 

A  VISIT  TO  A  STATE  CAPITOL 

We  leave  Washington,  and  at  last  our  train  arrives 
in  a  city  which  is  the  capital  of  one  of  the  states.  As 
we  leave  the  station,  we  walk  in  the  direction  of  the 
State  Capitol,  and  we  soon  catch  sight  of  it,  as  it  is 
built  on  rising  ground.  We  are  struck  at  once  by  the 
fact  that  it  looks  very  much  like  the  Capitol  in  Washing- 
ton, except  that  it  is  smaller  and  less  stately.  It  is  of 
white  marble,  and  built  in  the  classical  style.  There  is 
the  same  round  dome  in  the  center,  and  the  same  long 
wings  on  either  side  flanked  by  pillars.  Most  of  the 

263 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    265 

state  capitols  resemble  each  other  and  resemble  the 
Capitol  in  Washington,  though  of  course  they  differ 
in  details. 

The  outside  of  the  building  is  of  a  white  stone 
quarried  in  the  state,  and  the  inside  is  finished  with 
slabs  of  onyx,  a  valuable  stone.  The  pale  white  and 
green  of  the  onyx  and  its  high  polish  reflect  the  light 
like  shimmering  water.  As  we  move  along  the  glisten- 
ing corridors,  we  meet  a  guide,  an  elderly  man  with  a 
grey  beard,  and  we  ask  him  to  show  us  over  the  whole 
building.  He  is  very  glad  to  do  so,  and  seems  genuinely 
enthusiastic  over  its  beauty.  He  tells  us  that  he  him- 
self, being  a  stonemason  by  trade,  helped  to  build  it 
only  ten  years  ago.  The  state  had  been  growing  so 
rapidly  that  a  new  capitol  much  bigger  than  the  old 
one  was  needed. 

Before  we  have  gone  very  far,  an  old  farmer  and  his 
wife  join  our  party.  They  have  come  up  from  a  lonely 
country  district  in  the  state,  and  they  tell  us  that 
this  is  their  first  holiday  in  ten  years.  Evidently  a  visit 
to  the  State  Capitol  is  a  great  event  in  their  lives.  The 
farmer's  wife  is  a  quaint,  spectacled  old  lady  in  a  black 
dress.  Both  she  and  her  husband  are  very  much 
interested  in  knowing  how  much  money  has  been  spent 
on  the  furnishings  of  the  Capitol.  They  are  taxpayers. 
They  are  shocked  and  appalled  at  the  expensive  lux- 
ury of  the  building,  and  at  the  same  time  very  .proud 
of  it.  This  is  their  State  Capitol. 

We  go  down  first  into  the  basement  of  the  Capitol 
and  are  shown  the  offices  of  the  Bureau  of  Agriculture 


266          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

and  of  many  other  bureaus.  Not  only  the  Capitol  but 
the  state  government  itself  seems  to  be  organized  on 
the  pattern  supplied  by  our  National  Government. 
We  are  continually  reminded  of  this.  But  of  course 
the  state  government  is  on  a  much  smaller  scale.  Hence 
all  the  chief  offices  can  be  contained  in  one  building. 

On  the  first  floor  we  are  shown  the  offices  of  the 
Governor  and  of  the  state  treasurer.  The  Governor,  of 
course,  corresponds  to  the  President,  and  his  relations 
to  the  lawmaking  body  of  the  state  are  the  same  as  the 
relations  of  the  President  to  Congress.  The  Governor 
has  to  sign  all  the  bills  passed  by  the  state  legislature 
if  they  are  to  become  state  laws,  and  he  can  refuse  to 
sign  a  bill  if  he  pleases. 

The  Governor's  apartment  is  grandly  furnished,  and 
our  guide  informs  us,  with  a  dignified  *  air,  that  the 
Governor's  inkwell  cost  four  hundred  dollars. 

Then  we  are  led  through  long  corridors  on  the  first 
floor  and  pass  by  the  offices  of  the  Board  of  Health, 
which  safeguards  the  health  of  the  people,  especially 
during  epidemics  like  an  influenza  epidemic.  Of  all 
the  other  offices  that  we  see,  the  one  that  most  interests 
us  is  the  office  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, and  we  stop  for  a  moment  to  chat  with  one  of  the 
clerks  in  that  office.  He  is  very  proud  of  the  work  that 
the  state  is  doing  for  the  education  of  its  people,  and 
he  tells  us  that  there  is  open  to  every  child  in  the  state 
a  course  of  free  school  education  from  the  kindergarten 
to  the  State  University.  The  university  is  supported 
entirely  by  the  state,  but  the  public  schools  and  high 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT   267 

schools  are  supported  partly  by  the  state  and  partly 
by  the  cities  and  the  counties  in  which  they  are  located. 

Before  we  leave  the  Capitol  building  we  go  up  to  the 
second  story.  Here  we  see  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives (or  Assembly),  the  Supreme  Court  Room,  the 
Senate  Chamber,  and  also  the  State  Law  Library. 

We  tell  the  farmer's  wife  that  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives and  the  Senate  Chamber  are  smaller  and 
more  plainly  furnished  than  their  namesakes  at 
Washington,  but  that  they  are  built  on  the  same  plan. 
W7e  look  down  from  the  gallery  of  the  House  at  the 
assemblymen,  as  the  members  of  the  lower  house  are 
called  in  this  state.  They  seem  to  be  very  free  and  easy 
in  their  manners.  It  is  a  hot  day,  and  many  of  them  are 
lounging  in  their  chairs  with  their  coats  off  and  their 
feet  up  on  their  desks.  More  than  half  of  them  repre- 
sent the  farming  communities  of  the  state  and  are 
themselves  farmers,  a  fine,  honest,  straightforward  set 
of  men.  The  state  is  divided  up  into  a  number  of  small 
districts  for  the  purpose  of  state  elections,  and  each 
district  elects  two  assemblymen  and  one  senator  to  the 
state  legislature. 

Most  of  the  laws  under  which  we  live — laws  protect- 
ing life  and  property — are  state  laws,  no  less  important 
than  the  national  laws.  Many  of  them  deal  only  with 
the  local  needs  of  each  state.  However,  some  of  the 
new,  progressive  laws  that  have  been  tried  out  by  the 
states,  and  proved  successful,  have  afterwards  been 
adopted  by  the  National  Government  for  the  nation  as 
a  whole.  For  instance,  the  right  of  women  to  vote  was 


268          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

first  granted  by  some  of  our  western  states,  and  now  it 
has  been  adopted  by  the  nation  as  a  whole. 

As  we  look  down  at  the  state  assemblymen,  we  are 
sorry  to  hear  that  the  farmer  and  his  wife  have  not  a 
single  good  word  to  say  for  the  assemblyman  from 
their  district. 

"He  ain't  a  farmer,  he's  a  lawyer.  Very  slick.  He's 
always  puttin'  one  over  on  us.  He's  a  reg'lar  politician; 
likes  playin'  the  political  game,  and  likes  his  salary. 
Next  election,  we're  goin'  to  clean  out  the  old  gang 
and  put  in  some  good  men  of  our  own." 

The  old  farmer  looks  very  grouchy. 

We  wait  a  few  minutes  at  the  door  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  state  and  listen  to  a  lawyer  making  a 
speech.  The  guide  tells  us  that  this  lawyer  represents 
a  railroad  company.  As  the  old  farmer  listens,  the  ex- 
pression on  his  face  becomes  very  sour.  It  soon  appears 
that  he  has  a  grouch  against  railroads  as  well  as  against 
lawyers;  in  fact,  he  is  full  of  grouchiness. 

We  have  now  been  all  over  the  Capitol.  As  we  take 
leave  of  the  guide,  he  remarks:  "Now  that  you  have 
seen  the  State  Capitol,  how  about  visitin'  one  of  the 
state  institootions  ?  There's  a  nice  lot  for  you  to 
choose  from,  if  you're  choosey.  There's  the  Home  for 
Dependents  and  Defectives,  the  Home  for  the  Blind, 
the  State  Hospital  for  the  Insane,  and  the  State 
Penitentiary.  You  can  go  to  any  one  you  please,  just 
as  it  happens  to  soot." 

The  old  lady  looks  at  him  doubtfully  for  a  moment, 
then  she  answers  tartly:  "No  sir,  we  are  not  going  to 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    269 

visit  any  of  the  institootions  you  mention,  but  I  can 
see  that  we  taxpayers'll  all  be  driven  to  visit  the  County 
Poor  Farm,  if  we  leave  this  Capitol  under  its  present 
management  much  longer!" 


A  STATE  UNIVERSITY 

The  only  state  institution  we  wish  to  see  is  the  State 
University,  which  the  guide  at  the  Capitol  forgot  to 
mention  in  his  list. 

Shortly  after  our  visit  to  the  Capitol,  we  spend  a 
day  at  the  State  University,  and  are  shown  over  the 
campus  by  a  young  friend  of  ours,  a  boy  of  twenty,  who 
is  taking  a  course  in  engineering. 

Most  of  the  states  support  a  state  university  out  of 
the  taxes,  and  this  state  is  proud  of  its  big,  rapidly 
growing  institution.  Five  thousand  students,  men  and 
women,  attend,  and  there  are  over  four  hundred  pro- 
fessors on  its  faculty. 

Our  friend  meets  us  and  we  walk  through  the  town 
with  him  up  a  wide  central  street  which  leads  straight 
to  the  university.  A  great  many  young  men  and  gaily 
dressed  girls  are  walking  to  and  fro,  and  streams  of 
reckless  automobiles  filled  with  students  pass  by. 

The  first  university  building  we  visit  is  the  big 
library,  which  contains  half  a  million  books.  Our 
friend  takes  us  up  to  the  central  reading  room,  where 
we  walk  between  many  rows  of  mahogany  tabks-and 
chairs,  with  little  green  shaded  lamps  hanging  over- 
head. There  is  silence  everywhere.  Young  men  and 


WE  VISIT  A  STATE   UNIVERSITY 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    271 

women  move  quietly  about,  laden  with  books,  and  the 
place  seems  to  be  pulsing  with  work  like  a  beehive. 
We  remember  that  we  are  in  the  presence  here  of  half 
a  million  books,  including  all  the  greatest  books  of 
the  wor^d,  which  carry  the  heritage  of  our  civilization. 
We  stand  for  a  moment,  watching  the  scene  intently. 

A  few  of  the  students,  however,  do  not  seem  to  be 
impressed  with  this  thought  as  we  are.  They  are 
spending  a  good  deal  of  time  in  the  reading  room  look- 
ing around,  or  whispering  softly  to  each  other,  and 
they  seem  to  find  human  nature  more  interesting  than 
their  textbooks. 

In  the  basement  of  the  library  there  is  a  newspaper 
room.  We  come  across  a  student  who  is  carefully 
comparing  a  number  of  different  newspapers.  He  tells 
us  that  for  one  of  his  history  courses,  the  class  has  to 
write  a  history  of  the  world  day  by  day,  collecting 
the  facts  from  the  daily  papers. 

Near-by,  in  a  quiet  corner,  a  little  Chinaman  is 
sitting  absorbed  in  his  reading  of  Shakespeare's  plays. 
The  boy  with  us  has  met  this  Chinaman  at  one  of  the 
university  clubs,  and  he  asks  him  how  he  likes  his  work. 

"I  like  it.  But  must  work  hard.  The  examination 
on  Shakespears  will  be  execute  on  the  nine,  Monday 
morning." 

We  leave  him  shaking  his  head  over  the  prospect  of 
the  Monday  morning  execution. 

We  now  go  out  of  the  library  and  walk  up  the 
university  campus.  The  campus  is  like  a  park.  In 
between  the  university  buildings  there  are  wide  grassy 


272          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

stretches  and  tall  trees.  Gardeners  are  busy  sweeping 
away  the  red  and  gold  leaves  that  thickly  carpet  the 
ground.  Beyond  the  campus  itself  we  can  see  wooded 
hills  which  are  beginning  to  look  grey  and  wintry,  and 
beyond  the  hills  a  glimpse  of  a  grey  lake. 

The  buildings  near  the  library  are  the  medical  school, 
the  law  school,  and  the  engineering  building,  where 
young  "medics"  and  "laws"  and  "boiler  makers"  are 
trained  for  their  future  work.  Our  friend  takes  us  all 
round  the  engineering  shops,  and  we  see  professors  and 
students  dressed  in  grimy  over-alls  working  among  big 
machines.  What  most  impresses  us  is  a  full-sized  rail- 
road locomotive  which  is  kept  here  so  that  it  can  be 
thoroughly  examined  by  the  students. 

Beyond  the  engineering  building,  on  the  top  of  a 
small  hill,  is  a  big  central  building  called  Main  Hall. 
In  Main  Hall  there  are  dozens  of  lecture  rooms.  Our 
friend  tells  us  that  hundreds  of  different  courses  are 
given  here,  in  languages,  literature,  history,  mathema- 
tics, business,  and  the  natural  sciences.  In  the  hallway 
we  look  at  a  bulletin  board  where  notices  are  pinned 
up,  and  see  that  two  public  lectures  are  to  be  given 
that  afternoon.  One  is  on  astronomy,  and  is  called 
"The  Structure  of  the  Universe,"  the  other  is  on  fishes, 
and  is  called  "The  Breathing  of  the  Florida  Sea  Cow." 

"Mercy!"  we  say  to  ourselves,  "there  seems  to  be 
a  wide  range  of  choice  among  the  subjects  taught  at 
this  university." 

We  ask  the  boy  who  is  with  us  whether  he  is  enjoying 
himself  at  the  university,  and  he  replies,  "Yes,  indeed, 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    273 

this  is  a  very  nice  place,  and  there  would  be  plenty  of 
pleasant  things  to  do,  if  only  one  didn't  have  to  study!" 

He  tells  us  that  college  is  a  great  place  for  sports 
and  amusements  of  all  kinds.  The  fall  is  the  football 
season,  and  the  whole  university  goes  out  in  a  body  to 
watch  the  big  games  between  the  rival  teams  of 
young  football  heroes.  In  the  winter,  the  lake  freezes, 
and  the  students  skate  all  over  it,  and  they  play  ice- 
hockey  and  go  ice-boating  in  the  bitter  cold  wind.  Or 
if  there  is  deep  snow  they  go  sledding  in  the  woods  or 
skiing.  As  soon  as  the  weather  turns  warm,  in  April 
or  May,  they  begin  to  play  baseball  and  tennis.  Then, 
in  the  summer,  they  swim  in  the  lake,  or  go  canoeing, 
or  go  for  picnics  or  long  hikes  into  the  country. 

There  are  also  numerous  clubs,  which  are  organized 
by  the  students  for  their  pleasure  and  interest- 
debating  clubs,  musical  clubs,  theatrical  clubs,  and 
social  clubs  of  all  kinds.  And  there  is  a  great  deal 
of  dancing,  too,  as  the  fraternities  and  sororities  en- 
tertain each  other  with  dancing  parties  throughout  the 
year.  In  one  way  or  another,  the  students  are  able 
to  while  away  their  spare  time. 

In  a  building  near  Main  Hall  we  are  shown  a  printing 
press  in  operation.  The  students  of  journalism  edit  a 
daily  paper  and  do  all  the  writing  and  printing  them- 
selves. After  this  we  are  taken  into  three  buildings 
filled  with  scientific  laboratories.  Some  of  the  univer- 
sity professors  are  scientists  and  inventors  who  have 
made  valuable  discoveries.  In  one  room  some  young 
scientists  are  studying  sound,  and  we  are  shown  a 


274 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


photograph  of  the  sound  waves  of  a  violin.  Another 
room  seems  full  of  live  guinea  pigs.  Students  are 
learning  about  the  laws  of  heredity  by  comparing  the 
great-great-grandfather  and  great-great-grandmother 


A  CLASS  IN  DOMESTIC  SCIENCE 


guinea  pigs  with  the  hundreds  of  little  guinea  pigs 
that  surround  them. 

Before  walking  on  in  the  direction  of  the  College  of 
Agriculture,  which  is  some  distance  away  from  the 
science  buildings,  we  go  down  a  little  side  path  and  visit 
a  small  house  which  is  known  as  the  practice  cottage,  a 
modelhome  for  the  girls  who  are  learning  to  be  good 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    275 

housewives.  The  practice  cottage  is  charmingly  fur- 
nished. The  girls  are  taught  to  keep  it  in  apple-pie 
order,  and  they  are  allowed  to  invite  their  friends 
to  meals  which  they  themselves  have  cooked.  The 
students  we  happen  to  see  here  this  morning  are  pre- 
paring a  meal,  and  they  are  chattering  and  laughing 
together  very  gaily.  They  remind  us  of  little  girls 
playing  with  a  doll's  house,  but  are  indignant  when  we 
suggest  such  a  thing.  They  tell  us  that  their  courses 
are  very  difficult  and  very  scientific. 

In  the  College  of  Agriculture  we  are  first  shown  work- 
rooms where  young  "aggies,"  as  they  are  often  called, 
are  learning  the  science  of  farming.  We  see  them 
studying  seeds  and  soils  in  the  classroom.  But  the 
university  also  owns  a  big  farm,  where  practical 
farming  is  taught  out  in  the  open. 

Finally  we  see  the  Extension  Division  of  the  univer- 
sity, which  does  its  best  to  carry  the  university  to  the 
people.  Five  thousand  young  men  and  women  are 
able  to  attend  the  courses  given  here  on  the  campus, 
but  there  are  thousands  more  dotted  over  the  small 
towns  of  the  state,  who  have  to  stay  at  home.  These 
can  only  be  reached  by  mail  or  by  travelling  pro- 
fessors. About  seven  thousand  students  in  the  state 
take  correspondence  courses  through  the  Extension 
Division.  Books  are  mailed  to  them,  and  long  letters 
pass  back  and  forth  between  professors  and  students. 

The  College  of  Agriculture  has  a  special  Extension 
Division  of  its  own,  which  sends  out  workers  all  over 
the  state  to  help  the  farmers.  We  are  shown  maps  of 


276          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

the  state  which  describe  the  kind  of  work  that  is  being 
carried  out  in  the  different  counties.  The  university 
men  show  the  farmers  how  to  kill  their  weeds  in  the 
most  scientific  manner,  how  to  plant  and  spray  their 
orchards,  how  to  care  for  their  livestock,  and  how  to 
have  the  best  possible  crops.  As  a  result  of  all  these 
efforts,  the  crops  and  herds  of  the  state  have  increased 
enormously,  bringing  in  millions  of  dollars  to  the 
farmers.  So  the  people  of  the  state  are  being  repaid 
many  times  over  for  the  cost  of  the  university. 

Now  we  have  gone  all  over  the  campus  and  can 
form  some  idea  of  the  wonderful  opportunities  that 
the  state  is  offering  to  its  children  through  the  uni- 
versity. Most  of  the  students  we  meet  look  very 
happy,  and  this  is  because  they  are  free^to  choose  the 
kind  of  work  and  the  kind  of  play  that  suits  them 
best.  They  are  planning  the  future,  and  are  shown 
the  great  possibilities  in  the  life  work  that  stretches 
out  before  them. 

It  is  half-past  eleven,  and  our  friend  tells  us  that  he 
will  have  to  go  back  now  to  the  cafeteria  in  the  Wo- 
man's Building,  and  put  on  a  white  coat  and  apron. 
He  is  working  his  way  through  the  university  in  part 
by  acting  as  a  helper  in  the  dining  hall. 

He  tells  us  that  almost  half  the  students  are  working 
their  way  through.  In  the  summer  they  work  on  farms ; 
in  the  winter  they  wait  on  table,  or  take  care  of  fur- 
naces, or  beat  rugs,  or  clean  windows,  or  run  laundries. 
The  state  gives  them  a  splendid  education  practically 
free,  but  it  does  not  feed  them  or  clothe  them,  so 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    277 

those  who  wish  to  pay  all  their  own  bills  must  work 
part  of  the  time  and  earn  enough  money  to  pay  for 
board  and  lodging. 


A  COUNTY  COURTHOUSE 

The  government  of  a  county  is  carried  on  in  a  build- 
ing called  the  courthouse,  located  in  the  chief  town  of 
the  county.  Of  course  there  are  thousands  of  court- 
houses scattered  over  the  country,  as  each  state  is 
divided  up  into  many  counties,  but  most  of  them  are 
more  or  less  alike,  and  the  particular  one  that  we  are 
going  to  visit  is  fairly  typical  of  all  the  rest. 

We  select  a  quiet,  peaceful  little  country  town  and 
find  the  courthouse  situated  on  the  main  street,  in 
the  center  of  the  business  section.  At  first  glance  one 
would  feel  no  curiosity  to  go  in,  as  it  is  by  no  means 
as  splendid  a  sight  as  the  other  government  buildings 
we  have  visited.  It  is  just  a  small  building,  in  a 
small,  sleepy  town,  and  is  rather  dingy  in  color  and 
awkward  in  shape.  There  seems  to  be  very  little  go- 
ing on  in  its  vicinity.  But  in  spite  of  the  dull  air 
of  the  courthouse,  we  wish  to  see  its  "works"  and 
examine  them,  because,  after  all,  county  government 
affects  very  closely  and  intimately  the  lives  of  all 
country  people. 

The  courthouse  turns  out  to  be  much  more  interesting 
than  we  had  expected.  For  instance,  we  never  dreamed 
that  there  was  a  jail  in  the  basement  of  such  an  or- 
dinary-looking building. 


278 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


The  inside  of  the  courthouse  is  just  as  dingy  as 
the  outside.  The  walls  are  painted  a  dull  tan  color, 
and  the  woodwork  is  varnished  golden  oak.  There  are 
a  number  of  doors  opening  on  the  hallway,  and  each 


^flR 


I ,         -         ii 


?  .;•   "        .•    ,   i 

m--<  •-•sii 


A  COUNTY  COURTHOUSE 
Some  county  courthouses  are  fine  imposing  buildings  like  this  one. 

one  has  painted  on  it,  in  large  black  letters,  the  name 
of  a  county  office;  as,  SHERIFF — COMMISSIONERS - 
TREASURER  —  ASSESSOR — CLERK    AND    RECORDER  — 
SUPERINTENDENT  OF  SCHOOLS. 

The  first  office  we  are  shown  into  is  the  one  marked 
SHERIFF,  and  we  are  introduced  to  a  fine,  strong- 
looking  man  who  is  the  sheriff  of  the  county.  He  tells 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    279 

us  that  it  is  his  duty  to  arrest  offenders  against  the  law 
and  look  after  them  while  they  are  in  jail.  He  asks 
us  whether  we  should  be  interested  to  inspect  the  jail, 
and  we  reply  that  we  should. 

Carrying  a  bunch  of  strange-looking  keys,  the 
Sheriff  leads  the  way  down  into  the  basement,  an  ugly 
place  with  damp  walls  shrouded  in  gloom..  The  first 
cell  he  opens  for  us,  which  happens  to  be  empty, 
does  not  look  so  very  uncomfortable.  The  little  win- 
dow up  near  the  ceiling  is  barred  but  there  is  a 
white  bed  with  a  spring  mattress,  and  a  decent  cane 
chair.  This,  so  he  tells  us,  is  the  best  room  in  the 
jail,  and  is  reserved  for  women  and  children. 

We  are  thinking  to  ourselves  that  the  jail,  after  all, 
is  not  such  a  terrible  place,  when  the  sight  of  the  next 
cell  gives  us  a  start  of  horror.  The  walls  and  the  inside 
of  the  door  of  this  strange-looking  room  are  padded 
with  a  kind  of  thick  white  mattress,  and  the  ceiling 
and  the  higher  portion  of  the  walls  are  covered  with 
a  strong  steel  screen,  most  sinister  in  effect.  This  is 
the  "padded  cell"  for  violent  lunatics,  and  we  are 
shocked  to  hear  that  it  was  occupied  only  the  night 
before.  The  insane  are  not  kept  in  the  jail  long,  but 
are  sent,  after  examination,  to  the  State  Hospital  for 
the  Insane,  where  they  are  given  kind  and  helpful 
treatment,  in  comfortable,  and  even  beautiful,  sur- 
roundings. 

Turning  a  corner  of  the  dismal  basement  corridor, 
we  now  come  into  full  view  of  the  cages  where  male 
criminals  are  kept.  In  one  room  we  can  see  three  of 


280          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

them  sitting  together,  reading  magazines.  There  is  a 
bunch  of  flowers  on  the  table,  probably  brought  by 
friends,  but  their  sitting  room  is  untidy  and  ill-kept. 

One  of  these  men 
has  forged  a  small 
check,  the  other 
is  a  boy  who  has 
stolen  a  sum  un- 
der twenty  dol- 
lars, and  the  third 
is  a  bootlegger, 
who  is  serving 
time  for  making 
whiskey.  The 
bootlegger  smiles 
when  he  sees  us 
and  nods  his  head; 
later  we  hear  him 
humming  a  song 
with  seeming  un- 
concern. 

Sheriff 


INTERIOR  OF  A  JAIL 

shows  us  the  cells 

where  these  prisoners  sleep.  They  are  miserable  looking 
places  with  walls  of  steel  and  no  furniture  except  the  can- 
vas hammocks  which  are  strung  from  wall  to  wall.  The 
air  is  dank  and  unhealthy,  and  pools  of  dirty  water  lie 
on  the  floor.  The  Sheriff  tells  us  that  this  jail,  like  most 
county  jails,  is  an  old  one,  and  that  he  would  like  very 
much  to  have  a  new  jail  built  on  a  more  sanitary  plan. 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    281 

Now  he  pulls  out  his  biggest  key,  which  is  like  a  long 
screw  with  sharp  teeth  attached  to  it,  and  unlocks  for 
us  the  worst  horrors — the  dark  cell,  and  the  murderer's 
cell,  both  empty  at  this  time,  we  are  thankful  to  see. 
The  dark  cell,  as  we  look  into  it,  is  an  almost 
pitchblack  hole;  we  cannot  even  see  how  small  or  how 
big  it  may  be.  The  Sheriff  says  that  it  has  not  been 
occupied  for  years;  it  is  only  used  as  a  punishment  for 
prisoners  who  are  utterly  brutalized  and  undisciplined. 
He  believes  that  there  are  very  few  men  of  this  nature, 
perhaps  only  one  out  of  every  four  thousand  prisoners. 
We  doubt  if  a  dark  cell  does  even  such  a  man  any  good. 

The  murderers  cell  is  solitary,  apart  from  all  the 
rest.  The  walls  are  of  heavier  steel  than  the  other  cells, 
and  the  light  only  enters  slantwise  through  the  cage 
door,  from  a  window  across  the  corridor.  We  ask  the 
Sheriff  if  it  is  often  occupied,  and  he  explains  to  us  that 
men  arrested  for  murder  and  other  serious  crimes  are 
only  kept  here  in  the  county  jail  for  the  short  period 
between  their  arrest  and  their  trial.  After  their  trial, 
if  found  guilty,  they  are  sent  to  the  State  Penitentiary. 
The  only  prisoners  who  work  out  their  whole  sentence 
in  the  little  county  jail  are  those  charged  with  slighter 
offences,  such  as  bootlegging  and  petty  thieving. 

Now  we  have  been  all  over  the  little  county  jail. 
We  feel  sure  that  men  would  have  a  better  chance 
of  reforming  in  more  wholesome  surroundings  where 
they  could  work  out  of  doors.  The  Sheriff  locks  all 
the  doors  again,  and  takes  us  upstairs  into  the  Com- 
missioners' room. 


282          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Here  he  introduces  us  to  the  three  County  Com- 
missioners, who  are  sitting  at  a  long  oak  table  littered 
with  papers.  In  a  small  way,  the  Commissioners  are 
the  general  managers  and  lawmakers  of  the  county 
government.  It  is  they  who  decide  how  all  the  county 
taxes  shall  be  spent.  One  of  them  tells  us  that  in  private 
life  he  is  a  banker;  the  other  two  are  retired  farmers. 
We  ask  them  what  political  party  they  belong  to,  and 
it  turns  out  that  one  is  a  Republican  and  the  other  two 
Democrats.  But  they  assure  us  that  they  "get  along 
fine  "  in  spite  of  this.  They  look  at  each  other  and  laugh, 
and  seem  to  think  that  the  party  question  is  rather  a 
joke.  We  agree  with  them,  that  so  far  as  county  politics 
are  concerned,  it  is  a  joke.  There  is  always  a  great  deal 
of  talk  about  Republicans  and  Democrats  at  a  county 
election,  but  everyone  knows  perfectly  well  that  the  two 
great  parties  differ  chiefly  on  national  and  state  ques- 
tions, which  have  no  connection  at  all  with  the  daily 
work  of  a  county  officer.  For  instance,  take  the  sheriff's 
office.  At  an  election  we  should  want  to  vote  for  the 
best  possible  sheriff,  and  it  would  matter  very  little  if 
he  were  a  Democrat  or  a  Republican,  because,  as  many 
writers  have  remarked,  there  is  no  difference  between  the 
Republican  and  Democratic  methods  of  chasing  a  thief. 

But  to  return  to  our  Commissioners.  We  ask  them 
what  becomes  of  the  county  taxes  after  they  have  been 
collected,  and  they  tell  us  that  they  are  spent  on  roads 
and  bridges,  on  the  County  Home  (for  the  homeless 
poor),  on  schools,  on  child  welfare  work,  and  a  dozen 
other  good  causes. 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    283 

Opposite  the  Commissioners'  office  is  the  Treasurer's 
office.  We  do  not  go  in  there  to  inquire  what  the 
Treasurer's  business  may  be,  because  we  can  see  for 
ourselves.  PAY  YOUR  TAXES  HERE  is  written  in 
large  black  letters  on  the  door.  Next  to  the  Treas- 
urer's office  is  the  office  of  the  Superintendent  of 
Schools.  The  Superintendent  is  the  general  manager  of 
all  the  country  schools  in  the  county,  and  he  is  con- 
stantly making  little  trips  into  the  country  districts, 
visiting  one  school  after  the  other.  He  examines  the 
schoolchildren,  engages  teachers,  plans  with  the  teach- 
ers the  courses  of  study,  and  has  general  charge  of 
the  educational  system. 

Now  we  go  up  to  the  second  floor  of  the  County 
Courthouse,  to  see  the  court  rooms  where  trials  are 
held.  We  spend  more  time  looking  at  the  District 
Court  Room,  as  it  is  the  bigger  and  more  important 
of  the  two.  At  present  it  is  empty. 

Filling  the  body  of  the  District  Court  Room  are 
rows  and  rows  of  wooden  chairs  for  visitors.  Facing 
these  is  the  judge's  seat  upon  a  small  platform,  and 
directly  below  the  judge's  seat  is  a  table  with  chairs, 
reserved  for  the  lawyers  and  the  prisoners.  In  a  corner, 
on  the  left-hand  side  of  the  judge's  seat,  there  is 
another  platform  with  twelve  chairs  grouped  together. 
This  platform  is  reserved  for  the  jury. 

According  to  an  age-old  custom,  it  is  the  jury  of 
twelve  citizens,  and  not  the  judge,  that  decides  whether 
a  prisoner  is  guilty  or  innocent.  After  a  case  has  been 
heard,  the  jurymen  retire  to  a  little  anteroom  and  talk 


284          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

over  the  case  until  they  all  agree  upon  the  verdict. 
Then  they  come  back  and  announce  their  decision. 
If  they  say  "not  guilty,"  the  prisoner  is  let  free.  If 
they  say  "guilty,"  then  it  is  the  duty  of  the  judge  to 
decide  how  light  or  how  heavy  the  prisoner's  punish- 
ment shall  be. 

The  Clerk  of  the  Court,  who  is  showing  us  the 
District  Court  Room,  tells  us  that  a  murder  trial  was 
held  here  not  long  ago.  A  poor  dull-witted  country 
lad  had  murdered  his  father  and  a  farm  helper  with  a 
shotgun,  giving  as  his  reason  that  he  felt  "mad" 
because  they  had  put  his  little  dog  to  death.  The  jury 
found  the  prisoner  guilty,  and  the  judge  imposed  the 
sentence  of  imprisonment  for  life.  When  the  poor  boy 
heard  the  words  "for  life,"  he  murmured,  "that's  too 
long,  that's  too  long."  Later  he  was  declared  insane, 
and  was  removed  from  the  State  Penitentiary  to  the 
State  Asylum  for  the  Insane. 

After  hearing  this  melancholy  story,  we  leave  the 
little  County  Courthouse,  realizing  that  many  strange 
scenes  have  been  enacted  within  its  dingy  walls,  some 
of  them  moving  and  tragic  in  the  extreme. 


TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  The  United  States  is  a  nation  formed 
on  the  federal  principle.  Each  state  has  its  own  government  and 
local  authority,  but  all  the  states  together  form  one  union,  recog- 
nizing the  authority  of  the  central,  or  National  Government. 

(If  any  of  the  children  reading  this  book  happen  to  live  in  the 
capital  of  a  state,  it  is  suggested  that  their  teacher  take  them 
to  visit  the  State  Capitol.  If  they  live  in  a  county  town,  they 
should  visit  the  County  Courthouse.) 


STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT    285 

QUESTIONS 

1.  If  you  have  visited  a  state  capitol,  describe  what  you  saw 
there. 

2.  Who  makes  the  laws  for  the  state?   Who  are  the  principal 
state  officials? 

3.  Explain  how  the  state  governments  resemble  the  National 
Government  in  organization. 

4.  What  work  is  being  done  by  the  states  in  regard  to  public 
education? 

5.  What  kinds  of  laws  are  generally  state  laws? 

6.  Would  you  like  to  attend  a  university  later  on  ?  If  so,  why  ? 

7.  If  you  have  visited  a  county  courthouse,  describe  what  you 
saw  there. 

8.  What  are  the  duties  of  the  sheriff? 

9.  What  are  the  duties  of  the  county  commissioners? 

10.  Do  you  think  it  is  right  that  a  jail  should  be  in  an  untidy 
and  unsanitary  basement?   Give  reasons. 

11.  Should  prisoners  of  all  ages  be  kept  together,  regardless  of 
what  they  have  done?   Give  reasons. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

CITY  GOVERNMENT 

1.  A  VISIT  TO  NEW  YORK  CITY 

2.  THE  CITY  HALL 

3.  THE  WORK  OF  CITY  GOVERNMENT 

We  now  plan  to  visit  a  great  American  city  and  learn 
something  about  city  government.  After  some  hesitation, 
we  choose  New  York.  Its  government  is  not  exactly 
like  that  of  any  other  city  government,  but  it  is  a 
wonderful  city,  the  largest  and  richest  in  the  United 
States,  and  the  largest  and  richest  in  the  world.  We  feel 
certain  that  after  we  have  seen  something  of  such  a  huge 
and  complicated  city  government  as  New  York  must 
have,  it  will  be  easy  for  us  afterwards  to  understand  the 
government  of  any  smaller  American  city. 

A  VISIT  TO  NEW  YORK  CITY 

Our  train  pulls  in  at  the  Pennsylvania  Station,  which 
is  on  Manhattan  Island  in  the  heart  of  New  York.  We 
follow  a  stream  of  people  into  the  huge  central  hall  of 
the  station  and  are  thrilled  and  excited  at  our  first 
sight  of  the  great  city.  We  recall  the  dingy,  smoky 
little  railroad  depots  we  have  seen  in  small  towns,  and 
our  first  impression  suggests  the  might  and  good  for- 
tune of  New  York.  The  Pennsylvania  Station  is  as 

286 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  287 

huge  and  beautiful  as  a  cathedral.  Walls  of  light  col- 
ored stone  and  enormous  pillars  in  the  Roman  style 
support  an  arched  ceiling  decorated  in  pale  colors. 
We  look  up  at  some  designs  on  the  walls  and  find  that 
they  are  not  pictures,  as  we  at  first  glance  imagined 
them  to  be,  but  gigantic  maps  made  up  of  different 
colored  stones. 

Now  we  come  out  of  the  station  into  the  hubbub  of 
the  New  York  streets.  We  clamber  into  a  taxi  with  our 
suitcases  and  are  carried  rapidly  to  our  hotel,  driving 
a  few  blocks  along  Fifth  Avenue  on  the  way.  On  the 
sidewalks  there  are  vast  streams  of  people  elbowing 
each  other;  some  are  hurrying  along,  others  are  look- 
ing with  interest  at  the  glittering  store  windows.  The 
blue  dusk  of  a  winter's  evening  is  falling,  and  the 
round  street  lights  shine  out  like  colored  balloons. 
The  store  windows  are  filled  with  luxurious  objects,  and 
the  jewellers'  stores,  especially,  display  a  magic  wealth 
which  reminds  one  of  the  Arabian  Nights. 

Out  in  the  current  of  the  traffic,  the  automobiles 
follow  so  closely  upon  one  another  that  they  almost 
touch;  they  form  long  continuous  lines,  sliding,  twist- 
ing, and  writhing  like  serpents.  At  the  end  of  every 
block  there  is  a  policeman  regulating  the  traffic,  and 
several  times  our  taxi  has  to  stop,  with  the  rest  of  the 
autos,  while  a  little  huddled  crowd  of  people  on  foot 
cross  the  avenue.  The  policemen  are  big  men,  as  stately 
as  lords,  and  all  their  gestures  have  dignity  and 
authority.  This  is  our  first  sight  of  city  officials,  and 
it  comes  up  to  all  our  expectations. 


288          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

Our  hotel — a  skyscraper — also  comes  up  to  our 
anticipations.  It  is  actually  so  tall  that  we  can  hardly 
see  the  top  as  we  lean  out  of  the  window  of  our  taxi 
and  gaze  up  at  it.  It  seems  to  loom  down  out  of  the 
evening  mists  like  a  mountain  cliff. 

Inside  the  hotel  there  are  crystal  chandeliers,  all 
lit  up,  like  enormous  bunches  of  shining  flowers  shed- 
ding a  glorious  golden  blur  over  the  whole  scene.  We 
walk  through  open  halls,  among  waving  palms  and 
fountains  past  velvet  curtains,  treading  silently  upon 
soft  carpets  into  which  our  feet  seem  to  sink  two  or 
three  inches.  In  one  room  there  is  an  orchestra  playing 
dance  music,  and  for  a  moment  we  stand  and  watch  the 
dancers.  In  another  room,  called  the  Japanese  Tea 
Garden,  groups  of  beautifully  dressed  women  and  some 
men  are  sitting  at  little  tables  drinking  tea. 

Now  we  wish  to  find  the  rooms  that  we  have  engaged, 
and  we  pass  into  another  section  of  the  hotel  which  is 
filled  with  shops  and  booths.  There  is  a  barber's 
shop,  a  drug  store,  a  candy  store,  a  tobacco  store,  a 
newspaper  store,  and  many  others.  We  are  shown 
to  an  "express"  elevator  and  are  wafted  up  to  our 
rooms  on  the  twenty-fifth  floor,  leaping  five  stories 
at  a  time.  The  elevator  boy  tells  us  that  he  spends  the 
whole  day  going  up  and  down  the  elevator  shaft  in 
this  rapid  manner. 

Out  of  all  our  confused  impressions  of  the  city,  one 
stands  out  very  strikingly:  the  wonderful  organization 
of  modern  city  life.  Both  the  Pennsylvania  Station 
and  this  hotel  are  like  great  organized  beehives.  Some 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  289 

of  the  people  are  the  drones;  and  some  are  the  workers, 
running  and  flying  busily  to  and  fro,  each  carrying  his 
own  small  burden  into  the  hive,  each,  like  the  elevator 
boy,  fulfilling  his  small  duty  and  making  his  special 
contribution,  to  this  enormous  pile  of  energy  which  is 
the  Modern  City. 

We  can  realize  that  where  people  are  organized  so 
closely  the  government  will  have  a  great  deal  of  work 
to  do.  It  must  protect  the  people  who  are  helpless,  and 
prevent  those  who  are  unprincipled  from  doing  harm 
to  their  neighbors. 

We  find  that  our  hotel  bedrooms  are  a  miracle  of 
modern  plumbing.  Each  one  has  its  own  little  bath- 
room attached,  all  finished  with  glazed  white  tiles  and 
beautifully  fitted.  The  rooms  are  lighted  with  elec- 
tricity and  supplied  with  telephones.  When  we  go 
to  hang  up  our  coats  we  find  that  the  light  inside  the 
closet  is  turned  on  by  opening  the  closet  door,  and 
turned  off  by  shutting  it.  Another  neat  device 
that  pleases  us  is  a  little  niche  in  the  wall  with  a 
silver  button  which,  when  pressed,  causes  iced  water 
to  pour  into  a  drinking  glass  standing  ready  to  receive 
it.  All  these  labor-saving  devices,  however  trifling, 
mark  the  high  pitch  of  civilization  in  our  great  cities. 

The  whole  of  our  next  day  is  given  up  to  sight-seeing. 

Early  in  the  morning  we  telephone  to  a  friend,  who 
is  a  real  New  Yorker,  having  lived  here  all  his  life,  and 
he  promises  to  act  as  our  guide.  We  meet  him  in  the 
lobby  of  the  hotel  and  explain  to  him  that  we  wish  to 
see  something  of  the  government  of  the  city. 


290 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


A  RIDE  ON  FIFTH  AVENUE 

"Very  well,"  he  replies,  "but  first  you  ought  to  see 
something  of  the  city  itself." 

He  takes  us  to  Fifth  Avenue,  and  we  climb  to  the  top  of 
a  motor  bus  headed  in  the  direction  of  Riverside  Drive. 

The  ride  is  very  pleasant.  There  is  a  general  hum  and 
movement  of  life  in  the  street,  and  the  sun  is  shining 
down  brightly  on  the  polished  tops  of  automobiles  and 


CITY  GOVERNMENT 


291 


on  the  bright  colors  of  women's  hats  and  dresses.  Most 
of  the  store  buildings  are  high  and  seem  very  new.  Their 
white  tiles  glitter,  and  their  flags  float  gaily  in  the  wind. 
When  we  reach  the  Public  Library,  on  Fifth  Avenue 
at  42nd  Street,  we  clamber  down  from  our  bus,  be- 


THE  NEW  YORK  PUBLIC  LIBRARY  AT  NIGHT 

cause  we  want  to  see  this  famous  library  which  is 
considered  one  of  the  finest  in  the  United  States.  It 
was  built  by  the  City  of  New  York,  for  the  free  use  of 
the  people. 

It  is  much  bigger  than  the  library  which  we  saw  at 
the  State  University.  An  attendant  informs  us  that 
there  are  altogether  ninety  miles  of  bookshelves.  We 
go  through  all  the  reading  rooms  and  see  some  wonder- 


292          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

ful  books  and  prints,  but  what  charms  us  most  is  the 
children's  reading  room  on  the  first  floor.  Here  the 
walls  are  painted  with  gay  scenes  illustrating  various 
children's  books,  and  there  are  little  tables  and  com- 
fortable little  chairs  to  fit  small  children.  There  are 
bowls  of  fresh  flowers  on  the  tables  and  pots  of  ivy 
plants  and  ferns.  Everything  is  pleasing  and  delightful, 
and  even  the  kind  girl  librarians  who  find  books  for 
us  seem  to  have  been  especially  chosen  for  their  youth 
and  prettiness. 

Our  friend  tells  us  that  there  are  forty  other  public 
libraries,  built  by  the  city  with  money  given  by  Mr. 
Carnegie.  A  great  art  museum  and  other  museums 
also  belong  to  the  city.  If  we  only  had  time,  he  assures 
us,  we  could  spend  days  and  days  of  pure  enjoyment 
at  the  Art  Museum,  or  the  Natural  History  Museum. 

"Or/*  he  continues,  "if  you  would  rather  see  all 
kinds  of  wild  animals,  we  ought  to  go  out  to  Bronx 
Park.  Most  of  the  animals  in  the  Bronx  Park  Zoo  are 
not  shut  up  in  cages,  but  are  allowed  to  wander  about 
freely  in  fields  fenced  in  like  small  parks.  Even  the 
bird  cage  in  the  Bronx  is  so  big  that  it  contains  several 
growing  trees  and  a  little  stream  of  water  with  two 
pools.  The  birds  can  spread  their  wings  and  fly  about 
from  one  tree  to  the  other.  All  the  animals  are  there, 
two  by  two,  just  as  they  were  in  Noah's  Ark,  but 
there  isn't  the  same  overcrowding." 

We  are  interested  to  hear  about  these  places,  but 
unfortunately  we  have  no  time  to  visit  them.  We 
mount  to  the  top  of  another  bus  and  content  our- 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  293 

selves,  for  this  morning,  with  visiting  Central  Park. 
On  our  way  we  pass  by  a  number  of  great  stone  man- 
sions, belonging  to  famous  millionaires  including  the 
families  of  Vanderbilt,  Carnegie,  Frick,  and  Astor. 

Central  Park  is  a  charming  place  with  wide  grassy 
spaces,  tall  elm  trees,  and  a  number  of  little  lakes  where 
white  ducks  are  swimming.  It  seems  like  a  quiet  corner 
of  the  country  that  has  been  transported  to  the  middle 
of  the  great  city.  There  are  plenty  of  children  playing 
here,  most  of  whom  look  as  if  they  belonged  to  well-to-do 
families.  The  little  girls  are  well  dressed;  their  bobbed 
hair  is  combed  very  smooth  and  they  wear  smart  hats 
and  pretty  shoes. 

"Now  you  must  see  something  quite  different," 
says  our  friend,  leading  us  out  of  the  park.  "  In  a  great 
city  there  are  sharp  contrasts  of  rich  and  poor.  Let  us 
go  down  a  few  blocks  to  the  East  Side,  where  the 
factory  workers  and  poorer  classes  live.  Then  we  will 
take  a  street  car  to  the  Bowery,  which  is  quite  close  to 
the  City  Hall  and  the  Municipal  Building  where  the 
government  of  the  city  is  carried  on." 

We  turn  to  the  right  and  soon  come  to  a  gloomy 
quarter  where  the  streets  are  very  narrow  and  the 
stores  are  mean  looking.  We  get  into  an  electric  tram- 
car  and  find  it  crowded  with  men  and  women  who  seem 
to  be  foreigners.  The  men  are  mostly  standing,  hanging 
on  to  straps  for  support  as  the  car  lurches  and  sways; 
we  notice  the  tired-out  look  on  the  faces  of  some  of  our 
fellow  passengers.  This  part  of  the  city  does  not  seem 
a  healthful  place  to  live  in.  Many  of  the  women  have 


294          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

worried  faces,  and  the  children  are  pale.  Our  car  grinds 
and  crashes  along  for  several  miles,  down  an  avenue  lined 
with  small  dirty  stores  and  an  occasional  factory  quiver- 
ing with  the  vibrations  of  powerful  machinery.  One 
big  building  we  notice  is  closed  and  silent;  there  are  men 
guarding  the  doors.  Our  friend  suggests  that  the  work- 
men are  on  strike.  Probably  the  employers  of  the  fac- 
tory have  ordered  a  cut  in  wages  and  the  workmen  have 
refused  to  go  back  to  work,  or  the  workmen  have  asked 
for  higher  wages  and  their  request  has  been  refused. 

Most  of  our  big  business  companies  are  so  organized 
that  a  small  group  of  employers  with  money  have 
control  over  the  work  of  thousands  of  laboring  men 
who  are  only  wage-earners.  So  the  social  condition  in 
our  great  cities  is  not  such  an  equal  one  as  that  of  our 
farmers  in  the  country.  In  the  eyes  of  our  government 
all  men  are  equal.  But  it  is  always  difficult  to  preserve 
true  equality  in  government  and  democracy  where  there 
is  no  real  equality  in  the  working  life  of  the  people. 
One  of  the  great  problems  of  the  future,  which  city 
children  will  have  to  face  as  they  grow  up,  is  the  ad- 
justment of  the  relations  of  workmen  and  employers. 
A  big  coal  strike,  for  instance,  results  in  great  hardship 
for  all  city  people.  They  cannot  buy  enough  coal  to 
keep  themselves  warm,  because  the  demand  is  usually 
greater  than  the  supply  and  a  strike  cuts  off  the  sup- 
ply. Probably,  in  order  to  do  away  with  strikes  and 
industrial  conflicts  in  the  future,  changes  will  have 
to  be  made  in  the  organization  of  many  factories  and 
big  business  companies.  The  workers  do  not  consider 


CITY  GOVERNMENT 


295 


themselves  fairly  treated  unless  they  are  given  some 
share  in  the  profits  and  some  share  in  the  management. 
The  ride  to  the  Bowery  takes  some  time  as  the 
car  stops  at  each 
street  corner  and 
traffic  is  con- 
gested. When, 
finally,  we  reach 
the  lower  east 
side  of  the  city, 
we  get  out  of  the 
car  and  explore 
some  of  the  by- 
ways  of  this 
quarter.  It  is  not 
merely  over- 
crowded; it  is 
simply  swarming 
with  human  be- 
ings. The  houses 
are  swarming 
with  people,  the 
pavements  are  swarming  with  people,  the  streets  are 
swarming  with  people,  so  that  an  automobile  has  liter- 
ally to  push  its  way  through.  The  little  children, 
having  no  other  place^  to  play,  are  cheerfully  playing 
on  the  sidewalks,  or  squatting  in  the  gutters  which  are 
littered  with  garbage.  Their  clothes  and  their  sticky 
little  faces  are  covered  with  dirt  and  soot,  but  they  do 
not  seem  to  mind  their  condition. 


DOVER  STREET  IN  CHINATOWN 


296          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

The  houses  in  the  worst  streets  are  small  and  dingy 
and  old,  and  the  ugliness  of  their  general  appearance 
is  not  improved  by  the  number  of  fire  escapes  stuck  on 
the  outside,  little  staircases  of  iron  bars  which  at  once 
remind  us  of  the  cages  at  the  Zoo  in  Central  Park. 

Emerging  suddenly  from  the  gloom  of  the  Bowery, 
we  catch  a  glimpse  of  a  group  of  splendid  skyscrapers, 
shining  golden-white  in  the  sunlight,  high  up  above  the 
murky,  smoky  little  houses  of  the  slums.  Our  friend 
points  out  to  us  the  famous  Woolworth  Building,  fifty- 
one  stories  high,  and  near  it  the  new  Municipal  Build- 
ing, only  a  few  stories  lower. 

By  this  time  we  are  beginning  to  feel  rather  weary, 
and  are  footsore  from  walking  so  long  on  hard  pave- 
ments. We  find  a  quiet  little  cafe  overlooking  City 
Hall  Park,  and  here  we  rest  while  we  eat  our  lunch. 


THE  CITY  HALL 

After  lunch  we  stroll  through  City  Hall  Park.  We 
pass  by  one  of  the  courthouses  of  the  city,  and  we  can  see 
very  plainly  looming  up  into  the  sky  the  huge  Municipal 
Building,  where  the  offices  of  the  city  departments  are 
housed.  The  first  place  we  wish  to  visit,  however,  is  the 
City  Hall,  a  little,  old  building  of  pale  yellow  marble, 
which  seems  very  small  and  insignificant  in  the  presence 
pf  the  glittering,  overtowering  skyscrapers  that  have 
sprung  up  around  it  like  giant  beanstalks.  But  the  City 
Hall  has  charm  and  quaintness,  and  it  is  interesting 
historically.  It  contains  a  collection  of  relics  that 


CITY  GOVERNMENT 


297 


date  back  to  the  days  of  the  Revolution,  among  which 
is  a  writing  desk  which  belonged  to  George  Washington. 

We  enter  by  the  main  doorway,  and  there  is  no  one  to 
prevent  us  from  wandering  around  inside  to  see  what 
we  please.  Turn- 
ing to  the  left,  we 
come  to  the  office 
of  the  Mayor  of 
New  York.  As 
the  chief  official  of 
the  city  govern- 
ment, the  Mayor 
has  a  great  deal 
of  power,  and  he 
appoints  most  of 
the  men  who  are 
the  heads  of  the 
city  departments, 
just  as  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United 
States  appoints 
the  heads  of  the 
great  departments  in  Washington.  The  Mayor  is 
elected  by  the  votes  of  the  citizens. 

At  the  other  end  of.  the  little  City  Hall  is  the  room 
where  the  Council  or  Board  of  Aldermen  meets  to 
pass  the  laws  of  the  city.  This  council  is  the  lawmaking 
branch  of  the  city  government,  and  the  council  room 
reminds  us  of  the  House  of  Representatives  in  Wash- 
ington. There  are  rows  of  chairs  and  desks  on  the  main 


CITY  HALL  PARK 
The  tall  Municipal  Building  is  shown  in  the  center. 


298  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

floor,  where  the  aldermen  sit,  and  a  little  gallery 
above  for  spectators.  The  aldermen  are  elected  by  the 
citizens,  one  from  each  city  district. 

We  now  go  upstairs  to  the  second  floor  of  the  City 
Hall  and  are  shown  the  Washington  relics  and  the  room 
where  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment 
meets.  This  Board  is  very  important  because  it  de- 
cides how  the  city  taxes  shall  be  raised  and  spent. 
We  see  eight  men  coming  out  of  the  room,  and  hear 
one  of  them  say: 

"Well,  then,  the  total  this  year  will  be  two  hundred 
and  seventy-three  million  dollars — more  than  the  ex- 
penses of  London  and  Paris  put  together." 

Two  hundred  and  seventy-three  million  dollars! 
That  is  a  big  sum  for  one  city  to  spend  in  a  year. 

Our  friend  suggests  to  us:  "If  you  wish  to  see  with 
your  own  eyes  what  a  big  job  it  is  that  the  city  de- 
partments have  to  tackle,  and  how  they  spend  some  of 
their  money,  we  had  better  go  to  the  top  of  the  Wool- 
worth  Building,  where  we  can  look  down  over  the  whole 
of  New  York  City  and  get  an  idea  of  its  greatness." 

THE  WORK  OF  CITY  GOVERNMENT 

So  we  cross  the  street  to  the  Woolworth  Building, 
each  pay  fifty  cents,  and  are  shot  up  in  an  elevator  to 
the  fiftieth  floor.  After  we  get  out  of  the  elevator  we 
go  up  a  short  flight  of  steps  and  come  out  on  an  open 
platform  which  runs  around  the  topmost  pinnacle  of 
the  building. 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  299 

The  wind  is  blowing  strongly  up  here,  and  we  are  in 
the  full  blaze  of  the  sun.  We  walk  'to  the  edge  of  the 
little  platform,  and  for  a  moment  feel  sickeningly  dizzy, 
as  if  we  were  hanging  over  a  great  precipice.  The 
building  seems  to  rock  with  the  wind,  and  we  could 
almost  imagine  we  were  on  the  topmast  of  a  tall  ship. 
Soon,  however,  we  become  used  to  our  strange  position, 
and  are  able  to  look  around  with  pleasure  at  the 
wonderful  view  below. 

We  can  see  that  we  are  on  the  tip  of  a  narrow  strip 
of  land,  Manhattan  Island.  The  broad  expanse  of  two 
rivers,  the  Hudson  River  and  the  East  River,  divides 
Manhattan  from  the  mainland.  The  bridges  spanning 
the  rivers  look  like  the  threads  of  a  spider's  web,  they 
are  so  thin  and  fine  seen  from  this  distance.  Beyond 
them  lies  the  great  grey  mass  of  the  city — rows  upon 
rows  of  shining  roofs  stretching  out  in  every  direction 
for  miles  and  miles  to  the  misty  horizon. 

As  we  marvel  at  the  intricate  network  of  lines  that 
are  the  streets  in  the  great  living  design  mapped  out 
below  us,  we  are  told  that  the  streets  of  New  York 
would  span  the  whole  continent  of  America,  if  they 
were  stretched  out  into  one  straight  line.  It  is  the  duty 
of  the  city  to  build  streets,  repair  them,  and  keep  them 
clean.  The  clearing  of  the  streets  of  New  York  after 
one  very  heavy  snowstorm  cost  the  city  almost  two 
million  dollars! 

Ten  million  people  live  under  this  grey  mass  of 
roofs,  guarded  by  an  army  of  ten  thousand  city  police- 
men and  five  thousand  city  firemen. 


300          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

If  we  could  stay  up  on  the  roof  of  the  Woolworth 
Building  until  night  falls,  when  all  the  streets  are 
lighted  with  electricity,  in  the  dark  mist  the  city  so 
far  below  us  would  seem  like  another  sky  lit  with  stars. 


NEW  YORK  AT  NIGHT  (TIMES  SQUARE) 

The  city  supplies  the  electricity  for  lighting  the 
streets,  and  it  also  supplies  pure  water  for  all  the 
houses. 

"One  must  think  of  a  great  city/'  says  our  friend, 
"as  a  huge  mass  which  is  honeycombed  with  hidden 
pipes  and  wires.  Under  the  streets,  under  the  pave- 
ments, between  the  floors  and  ceilings  of  all  the  houses 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  301 

they  run,  hundreds  and  thousands  of  them — electric 
wires,  telephone  wires,  gas  pipes,  and  water  mains. 
They  are  like  the  pulsing  veins  and  nerves  inside  a 
human  body. 

"A  city  needs  pure  water,  if  it  is  to  remain  healthy, 
just  as  the  human  body  needs  pure  blood.  The  citizens 
of  New  York  drink  the  pure  crystal  water  of  mountain 
streams,  which  is  brought  down  to  them  from  the 
Catskill  Mountains,  a  distance  of  ninety-two  miles." 

We  look  again  over  the  great  view  in  the  afternoon 
light,  and  notice  here  and  there  little  green  patches 
breaking  into  the  dull  expanse  of  roofs.  These  are  the 
city  parks.  They  seem  very  small  and  far  apart, 
and  yet  we  are  told  that  the  city  keeps  up,  altogether, 
eight  thousand  acres  of  park  land.  Unfortunately  too 
few  of  these  are  in  the  crowded  section. 

Then  our  friend  points  out  the  roofs  of  a  number  of 
big  public  buildings  belonging  to  the  city — schools, 
libraries,  museums,  and  hospitals.  The  city  maintains 
ten  splendid  hospitals,  one  of  which  is  especially  for 
children.  Looking  many  miles  down  the  East  River,  we 
see  some  little  islands,  faint  and  misty  in  the  distance, 
and  are  told  that  some  of  the  city  hospitals  and  many 
of  the  city  prisons  are  located  on  these  islands. 

Directly  underneath  us  is  the  little  City  Hall  Park, 
and  opposite  us  is  the  Municipal  Building  where  the 
offices  of  the  city  departments  are  housed.  It  is  an 
enormous  skyscraper,  forty-one  stories  high.  A  fairly 
wide  street,  noisy  with  traffic,  runs  right  through 
the  middle  of  the  building,  reminding  us  of  the  drive- 


302  THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

ways  that  are  cut  through  the  trunks  of  giant  trees  in 
California.  On  one  of  the  sidewalks  our  friend  points 
out  to  us  the  entrance  to  a  subway  station  which  is 
built  among  the  foundations  of  the  skyscraper.  The 
subways  are  underground  electric  railways  used  every 
day  by  hundreds  of  thousands  of  workers  who  come 
in  from  the  suburbs  to  their  places  of  business  in  the 
heart  of  the  city. 

We  spend  almost  half  an  hour  on  the  top  of  the  Wool- 
worth  Building  gazing  down  at  this  aeroplane  view  of 
the  city,  spread  out  below  us  as  flat  as  a  map.  Then 
we  dive  down  by  way  of  the  elevator,  and  join  the 
stream  of  people  that  are  hurrying  along  the  streets. 
From  the  top  of  the  Woolworth  Building  all  the  in- 
habitants of  the  city  looked  like  tiny,  creeping  insects, 
and  the  automobiles  seemed  to  crawl  like  flies. 

By  this  time  we  are  tired  of  sight-seeing,  and  go  back 
thankfully  to  the  luxurious  comfort  of  our  hotel. 

That  same  afternoon  we  read  a  description  of  a 
typical  New  York  family,  written  by  Mr.  John  Tildsley, 
who  is  connected  with  the  schools  of  New  York.  It 
shows  how  the  well-being  of  a  city  family  is  dependent 
on  the  work  of  the  city  government. 

"Mr.  Jones,  the  average  New  Yorker,  lives  in  an 
apartment  of  six  rooms.  When  he  gets  up  in  the 
morning  he  washes  with  clear  water  brought  a  hundred 
miles  and  furnished  to  himself  and  his  family  by  the 
city  government  for  drinking,  cooking,  bathing,  and 
cleaning  at  a  cost  of  about  twelve  dollars  a  year,  paid 
as  part  of  his  rent.  Mrs.  Jones  cooks  the  breakfast 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  303 

with  gas,  the  price  of  which  is  regulated  by  law.  On 
the  cereal  she  pours  milk,  the  purity  of  which  has 
been  tested  by  the  same  city  government.  The  hash 
is  made  from  beef  bearing  the  stamp  of  a  Federal 
Inspector  which  means  that  the  animal  from  which  it 
came  was  free  from  disease  when  killed.  Even  the 
butter  and  eggs  have  been  inspected  by  some  officer 
of  the  law.  After  breakfast  Mrs.  Jones  sends  down  the 
garbage  to  be  removed  by  the  'White  Wings'  of  the 
city  Department  of  Street  Cleaning.  The  dishwater  is 
carried  by  a  city-built  drain  to  the  river  miles  away. 

"Mr.  Jones  then  goes  to  his  work  on  one  of  the  sub- 
ways built  by  the  city,  and  he  pays  a  nickel  fare,  the 
amount  fixed  by  law.  He  works  in  a  factory  where  the 
conditions  of  work  are  regulated  by  state  and  city  laws. 

"Mrs.  Jones  sends  the  little  daughter  of  eight  to  a 
free  public  school  supported  by  the  city  where  the 
child  is  not  only  given  an  education  but  is  examined 
from  time  to  time  by  a  nurse  from  the  Department  of 
Health,  so  that  her  health  may  be  protected. 

"A  son  of  fourteen  goes  to  a  free  public  high  school, 
a  son  of  seventeen  attends  the  free  College  of  the  City 
of  New  York,  and  a  daughter  attends  Hunter  College, 
also  supported  by  the  city. 

"At  three  o'clock  the  little  eight  year  old  daughter 
returns  from  school  and  plays  in  a  street  which  has 
been  swept  clean  and  washed  down  by  the  'White 
Wings/  and  at  this  hour  is  kept  free  from  traffic  by  a 
policeman  so  that  the  children  may  play  in  safety.  The 
daughter  attending  Hunter  College  goes  to  read  in  a 


304          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

beautiful  public  library,  and  the  high-school  boy  goes 
with  his  school  team  to  play  baseball  in  a  city  park. 

"In  the  evening  Mr.  Jones  and  his  wife  attend  a  free 
lecture  provided  by  the  city,  and  the  older  children 
go  to  a  free  band  concert  in  the  park.  At  eleven  they 
return  to  their  home.  They  climb  up  stairs  lighted 
throughout  the  night  by  order  of  the  Tenement  House 
Department,  and  they  go  to  sleep  in  rooms  well  aired 
and  well  built  according  to  the  regulations  of  the  city. 

"If,  in  spite  of  all  this  care  taken  by  the  city  govern- 
ment, one  of  the  Jones  family  should  fall  sick,  he  or  she 
may  be  removed  to  a  hospital  supported  by  the  city." 

And  so,  Mr.  Tildsley  concludes,  if  city  government 
costs  much,  it  also  does  much. 

TOPIC  FOR  DISCUSSION:  In  a  big  city,  where  people  are  organ- 
ized closely  together,  the  city  government  must  undertake  a 
great  deal  of  work. 

(Children  living  in  a  large  city  should  be  taken  to  visit  the 
city  hall.) 

QUESTIONS 

1.  If  you  live  in  a  city,  explain  how  your  health  and  comfort 
are  dependent  on  the  conduct  of  your  neighbors  and  the  protection 
of  the  city  government.    Suppose,  for  instance,  that  your  next 
door  neighbor  has  scarlet  fever,  what  precaution  is  taken  to  se- 
cure the  recovery  of  your  neighbor  and  to  prevent  contagion? 

2.  Explain  the  use  and  value  of  public  libraries  and  public  parks. 

3.  Compare  living  conditions  in  a  great  city  with  living  con- 
ditions in  the  country. 

4.  What  are  the  bad  results  of  overcrowding  in  a  big  city? 

5.  What  are  the  bad  results  of  lack  of  supervision   in   the 
country  ? 


CITY  GOVERNMENT  305 

6.  If  you  have  visited  a  city  hall,  describe  what  you  saw 
there. 

7.  Name  the  chief  city  officers  for  whom  a  citizen  votes  at  a 
city  election. 

8.  How  many  policemen  and  how  many  firemen  are  there  in 
New  York  City  ? 

9.  Describe  the  work  of  the  city  government  in  connection 
with  streets,  electricity,  water,  and  transportation. 

10.  What  are  public  buildings? 

11.  Explain  how  the  well-being  of  a  city  family  is  dependent 
on  the  work  of  the  city  government. 

12.  Who  is  responsible  for  a  bad  city  government? 

13.  What  advantages  have  the  children  of  a  great  city  over 
country  children?   What  disadvantages? 


CHAPTER   XIV 
AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY 

1.  JOHN  AND  LUCY 

2.  THE  PAST  AND  THE  FUTURE 

The  express  trains  that  cross  the  United  States  from 
East  to  West  pass,  without  stopping,  through  hundreds 
of  small  towns  that  are  never  mentioned  or  described  in 
our  geography  textbooks  because  there  are  too  many  of 
them. 

In  one  of  these  small  towns,  which  we  shall  call  Redfield 
Center,  lives  a  boy  whom  we  shall  call  John.  His  life  is 
like  that  of  thousands  of  other  boys  who  are^now  growing 
up  in  America.  His  house  is  the  type  of  house  that 
would  be  advertised  in  the  local  newspapers  as: 

A  Real  Bargain 

Nine-room  frame  house.  Modern.  Bathroom,  porch, 
garage,  henhouse,  fruit. 

JOHN  AND  LUCY 

John  comes  down  to  breakfast  still  feeling  very 
sleepy.  He  eats  his  grapefruit,  enjoying  the  sharp,  bit- 
ter taste,  but  he  is  scarcely  conscious  of  his  thoughts, 
they  are  so  vague  and  slow.  He  speaks  very  little,  ex- 
cept to  ask  for  more  to  eat. 

306 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    307 

Brilliant  sunlight,  the  sunlight  of  the  dry  middle- 
western  air,  is  pouring  in  over  the  breakfast  table.  It 
shines  on  the  bright  heads  of  the  three  children — John, 
and  Lucy,  and  the  baby.  It  throws  haloes  around 
the  cups,  and  rainbows  around  the  glasses,  so  that  all 
the  table  is  in  a  luminous  haze  of  light. 


JOHN'S  HOME 

As  soon  as  they  have  finished  their  breakfast,  John 
and  Lucy  start  to  school.  There  are  streams  of  children 
pattering  down  Seventeenth  Street,  on  their  way  to  the 
Lincoln  School.  The  sky  is  blue  and  high,  and  the  tall 
maple  trees  shading  the  sidewalks  are  crimson  and 
yellow  against  the  blue,  for  it  is  the  beginning  of  the 
school  year. 

John  hails  some  of  his  young  friends  and  walks  to 
school  with  them.  His  talk  is  rather  inclined  to  slang, 


308          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

and  at  home  he  alludes  to  his  school  friends  variously 
as  guys,  chaps,  fellows,  birds,  or  nuts.  Now  and  again, 
his  father  asks,  "Aren't  there  any  boys  at  all  in  your 
school,  John?" 

The  Lincoln  School  is  a  solid  red  brick  building  set 
in  a  large  playground.  There  are  several  swings  and 
teeters,  a  sandpile  for  the  little  children,  and  a  steep 
wood-en  slide  for  the  older  ones.  The  children  go  into 
school  for  an  hour  or  two,  then  they  come  out  again  for 
an  interval  of  play.  John  and  his  friends  play  baseball, 
and  make  a  great  noise,  squealing  and  yelling.  Their 
voices  rise  and  fall  with  bursts  of  excitement  in  a  kind 
of  chant,  like  the  rude  songs  of  the  Indians  that  follow 
no  musical  scale.  Soon  the  bell  rings,  however,  and 
the  children  march  back  into  the  schoolhouse.  When 
they  are  all  in  the  classroom,  they  sing  to  piano  accom- 
paniment a  little  song  called  "Sunbeam."  Now  their 
voices  sound  very  different.  Some  of  the  boys,  includ- 
ing John,  do  not  seem  to  have  voice  enough  to  sing  at  all. 

When  John  was  a  little  boy  he  enjoyed  school  very 
much,  because  in  the  primary  grades  the  children  did 
so  many  pleasant  things — painting  paper  daffodils 
to  stick  on  window  panes,  cutting  out  black  witches 
for  Halloween,  or  making  paper  furniture  and  airplanes. 
Now  John  has  to  study  more  seriously  and  at  times  he 
has  to  take  examinations.  If  you  ask  him  nowadays 
whether  he  likes  school,  he  answers  cautiously,  "Oh,  I 
like  it  pretty  well." 

There  are  no  expensive  private  schools  in  this  little 
Western  town,  and  so  the  children  of  rich  parents 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    309 

attend  the  public  schools  with  the  poorer  children. 
John's  father  is  a  firm  believer  in  the  American  public 
school  system,  because  it  means  equal  opportunity  for 
all.  He  hopes  that  his  son  will  go  to  high  school,  and 
then  work  his  way  through  the  state  university.  He 
tells  John  that  all  kinds  of  opportunities  are  open  to 
boys  with  university  degrees,  and  that  there  will  be  no 
limits  to  John's  future  except  those  set  by  his  own  ability 
and  character. 

At  midday  John  and  Lucy  go  home  to  dinner  and  eat 
a  hearty  meal  of  roast  beef,  with  browned  potatoes,  and 
corn  on  the  cob  fresh  from  the  garden,  followed  by 
pumpkin  pie. 

Their  mother  is  tired,  after  a  long  morning  of  ironing 
and  cooking;  so,  after  dinner,  John  and  Lucy  clear  the 
table,  and  then  clean  the  dishes  in  the  kitchen.  They 
have  time  for  this  because  they  live  near  the  school. 
Lucy  does  the  washing,  while  John  does  the  drying. 
John  would  prefer  to  wash  the  dishes  himself,  but 
when  he  undertakes  this,  he  is  apt  to  splash  the 
whole  kitchen  with  soapy  water. 

Dishes  in  hand,  John  gives  his  sister  what  she  calls 
a  free  lecture  on  radio.  He  has  borrowed  books  on  this 
subject  from  the  library,  and  has  set  up  a  wireless  ap- 
paratus on  the  roof  of  his  bedroom. 

At  last  Lucy  exclaims,  "John,  if  you  say  another 
word  to  me  about  wireless,  I  think  I  shall  go  crazy!" 

"  But  Lucy,"  he  remonstrates  in  a  reproachful  tone, 
"if  I  don't  explain  this  to  you,  you  might  have  a 
terrible  accident  some  day!" 


310          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

So  he  goes  on  talking,  and  Lucy  only  pretends  to 
listen.  At  the  end  of  a  long  explanation,  she  says 
vaguely  "yes"  or  "no"  or  "gee!"  according  to  the 
tone  of  John's  voice.  At  last  he  gives  up  for  the  time. 

"You  can't  fool  me,  Lucy.  I  know  you  haven't 
been  listening  for  a  long  while.  It's  no  use.  It's  no  fun 
explaining  all  these  difficult  things  to  you." 

Lucy  is  not  at  all  interested  in  the  science  of  wireless 
telegraphy.  She  loves  reading.  She  loves  to  sit,  curled 
up  in  an  armchair,  reading  fairy  tales  or  laughing  and 
weeping  over  the  stories  of  Miss  Alcott. 

This  same  afternoon,  in  school,  Lucy  is  given  a  sum 
in  arithmetic  about  three  men  walking  in  a  handicap 
race.  They  all  start  at  different  times  and  walk  at 
different  speeds.  Poor  Lucy  ponders  over  this  problem 
until  her  brain  is  in  a  whirl.  She  is  not  sure  whether  the 
answer  should  be  in  men,  or  miles,  or  minutes,  and  she 
keeps  telling  herself  that  she  does  not  care  in  the  least 
which  man  wins.  John,  on  the  other  hand,  who  is  good 
at  arithmetic,  enjoys  working  out  a  problem  of  this 
kind.  But  a  little  later  when  compositions  must  be 
written,  John  scowls  and  scratches  his  head  while 
Lucy's  pen  runs  rapidly  over  the  paper. 

After  school,  John  rides  down  town  on  his  bicycle 
to  the  newspaper  office  and  then  spends  an  hour  de- 
livering the  Redfield  Center  News  to  its  subscribers  along 
a  certain  route.  There  are  two  local  newspapers  in 
Redfield  Center,  the  News  and  the  Star. 

John's  method  of  delivering  papers  is  to  career  down 
the  street  on  his  bicycle  at  full  speed,  tossing  papers 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    311 

right  and  left  into  front  yards  and  on  to  front  porches. 
It  is  a  hit-or-miss  method,  but  he  is  a  good  shot,  and 
so  far  very  few  of  his  subscribers  have  telephoned 
complaints  to  the  newspaper  office. 

John  does  not  mind  delivering  the  paper,  because 
he  earns  a  little  money  in  this  way,  and  can  go  to  the 
movies  with  his  friends,  buying  his  own  tickets. 

When  he  returns  home,  he  finds  his  mother  sitting 
on  the  front  porch  in  a  rocker,  with  the  baby  on  her  lap. 
It  is  a  quiet  evening,  and  the  weather  is  warm.  John's 
grandfather  is  watering  the  front  lawn  with  the  hose, 
and  he  is  also  watering  the  concrete  sidewalk  which 
connects  the  house  with  all  the  other  houses  like  it  on 
Seventeenth  Street. 

John  now  has  a  little  rest,  sitting  chatting  with  his 
mother  on  the  porch  and  playing  with  the  baby.  He 
needs  astonishingly  little  rest,  however,  and  in  an 
hour  or  so  he  is  ready  for  more  exercise.  He  asks  his 
mother  if  he  may  go  for  a  picnic  supper  with  the  Boy 
Scouts.  She  has  no  objection,  and  soon  he  puts  on  his 
uniform,  slings  his  canteen  over  his.  shoulder,  and 
starts  off  on  a  hike  into  the  hills  with  his  friends. 

It  is  the  object  of  the  Boy  Scout  organization  to 
teach  the  boys  to  be  good  citizens,  and,  taken  in  its 
widest  sense,  good  citizenship  means  nothing  less  than 
good  living.  Scouts  must  have  respect  for  law  and 
order,  and  they  must  be  honest,  healthy-minded,  out- 
of-door  boys.  John's  Scoutmaster  teaches  his  Scouts 
to  observe  the  life  of  the  woods,  the  plants,  trees, 
birds,  and  animals,  believing  that  a  love  of  nature  is  one 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    313 

of  the  healthiest  outlets  for  a  boy's  energy  and  interest. 
Like  thousands  of  other  young  Scouts  all  over  the 
country,  John  has  become  especially  interested  in 
birds. 

While  they  are  climbing  up  a  steep  hillside,  John 
tells  the  Scoutmaster  all  about  his  wrens. 

The  grocer  at  the  corner  store  on  Seventeenth  Street 
gave  John  a  little  wooden  box  which  he  has  nailed  up 
under  the  roof  of  the  back  porch.  Every  summer  this 
box  is  occupied  by  wrens,  and  John  firmly  believes  that 
the  same  pair  of  birds  come  back  to  it  year  after  year. 
He  watches  them  with  absorption  and  is  deeply  con- 
cerned when  any  tragedy  overtakes  their  young  ones. 

"Those  birds  are  like  humans  in  some  ways,"  he 
says  to  the  Scoutmaster,  "you  would  be  surprised. 
First  the  father  wren  starts  building  the  nest,  and  then 
the  little  mother  wren  comes  along  and  throws  out 
some  of  the  furniture,  till  the  porch  is  all  littered  with 
twigs.  Their  tastes  in  house  furnishing  don't  quite 
agree;  that's  the  trouble.  She  seems  very  quiet  at 
first,  and  doesn't  sing  the  way  he  does,  waking  me  up 
every  morning;  but  as  soon  as  the  young  ones  are 
hatched  she  begins  to  jabber  a  blue  streak  at  them,  and 
they  jabber  back.  Last  year  one  of  the  young  ones  was 
more  scary  than  the  rest.  He  sat  in  the  nest  two  or  three 
hours  after  the  others  had  flown.  It  was  a  circus  to 
watch  him ;  he  couldn't  make  up  his  mind.  He  kept  pok- 
in'  his  head  out  of  the  window  and  pullin'  it  in  again. 
It  was  a  long  steep  flight,  and  it  scared  him,  but  finally 
he  made  it.  A  funny  little  bird  he  was,  too,  soft  and 


314          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

fat,  with  a  little  bit  of  a  wren's  tail  cocked  up.  Birds 
have  instinct,  but  they  have  to  have  courage  too  in 
starting put,  the  same  as  we  have." 

The  Scoutmaster  is  very  much  interested  in  this 
account;  because  he,  too,  finds  bird  life  fascinating  to 
watch. 

Redfield  Center  lies  on  the  edge  of  the  plains  up 
against  the  foothills  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  When 
the  Boy  Scouts  reach  the  top  of  the  high  ridge  where 
they  are  going  to  cook  their  supper — a  wild  scene  of 
rocks  and  pine  trees — they  have  an  immense  view, 
that  stretches  eastward  over  the  plains  and  westward 
into  the  mountains.  The  mountains  are  beautiful  at 
this  hour  of  sunset,  but  the  plains  are  still  more  so. 
Seen  from  a  great  height,  the  plains  reflect,  like  a  tinged 
mirror,  the  changing  colors  of  the  sky;  they  are  green 
and  blue  and  violet.  In  the  far  distance  lie  stretches 
of  pure  gold;  in  the  foreground  move  great  dark  shad- 
ows, wine-colored,  thrown  by  the  clouds. 

John  never  feels  happier  than  when  he  is  out  of  doors. 
Now,  as  he  sees  the  great  landscape  stretching  about 
him,  he  suddenly  feels  proud  to  be  an  American  boy. 
"This  country  is  mine,"  he  says  to  himself.  "It's  a 
new  country,  it's  an  open  country,  and  it's  a  democ- 
racy; so  it  belongs  to  me  as  much  as  it  belongs  to 
anyone.  I'm  an  American  boy  and  I'm  a  Scout.  I'll 
blaze  my  own  trail  in  life,  and  I'll  follow  it." 

To  be  out  of  doors,  to  have  a  sense  of  the  fullness 
of  life,  and  of  the  bigness  and  freedom  of  the  land;  that 
is  what  it  means  to  John,  in  this  mood,  to  be  an  Ameri- 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    315 

can.  He  is  looking  down  over  the  edge  of  the  great 
American  prairie  that  has  been  called  the  Valley  of 
Democracy. 

Suppose  John  were  to  think  of  himself  as  a  citizen, 
and  say  to  himself,  "Here  am  I,  an  American  boy, 
living  in  an  American  city.  What  does  it  mean?  If  I 
had  to  take  an  oath,  like  the  Athenian  boy,  to  leave  my 
country  not  lessened,  but  greater  and  better  than  I 
found  it,  what  could  I  do  ?" 

When  John  grows  up,  he  will  have  to  vote  on  a  great 
many  new  questions.  Thirty  years  hence,  Redfield 
Center  will  be  different  from  what  it  is  now,  and 
America  will  be  different,  because  life  is  continually 
changing.  John  and  millions  of  others  who  are  now 
children  must  serve  their  country  if  they  wish  to  make 
it  a  better  country  and  not  a  worse,  and  they  must 
work  for  the  welfare  of  their  cities,  to  make  them  more 
beautiful  and  more  wholesome  places  to  live  in. 

At  city  elections,  John  will  have  to  vote  on  what  may 
seem  to  him,  perhaps,  small  questions.  Should  a  new 
concrete  bridge  be  built  on  Twelfth  Street?  Do  the 
children  of  Redfield  Center  need  an  indoor  swimming 
pool?  But  only  by  the  wise  solving  of  such  questions 
can  Redfield  Center  grow  into  a  fine  American  city. 

In  connection  with  the  government  of  his  state,  he 
will  have  to  think  over  social  questions  of  greater  im- 
portance, including  very  likely  the  problems  of  the 
workingman.  Should  the  trade-unions  be  allowed  to 
strike  against  their  employers  when  a  big  strike  means 
suffering  and  loss  to  the  general  public?  Should  the 


316          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

workers  in  a  great  industrial  corporation  be  given  some 
share  in  its  management?  Such  questions  as  these  are 
very  serious;  they  still  remain  unsettled  and  cause 
great  disputes. 

When  John  votes  for  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  and  for  his  national  Senators  and  Representa- 
tives, he  will  be  dealing  with  matters  affecting  the 
whole  country,  perhaps  even  affecting  the  whole  world. 
One  of  the  great  problems  of  the  future  is  the  matter  of 
a  coming  together  of  nations.  Is  it  possible  to  prevent 
wars  between  nations?  Would  it  be  safe  for  the 
United  States  to  maintain  only  a  very  small  army  and 
navy  ? 

John  will  have  to  think  seriously  over  such  questions 
and  many  others,  and  he  will  have  to  decide  them  for 
himself.  No  book  on  democracy  can  tell  John  with 
what  party  he  should  vote,  because  his  freedom  of 
choice  is  the  foundation  of  democracy. 

But,  in  the  past  history  of  the  world  and  the  history 
of  America,  certain  principles  of  freedom,  which  have 
proved  themselves  true,  and  helpful  to  progress,  have 
been  won  at  great  sacrifice.  John,  and  all  American 
children,  should  know  them  and  consider  them. 


THE  PAST  AND  THE  FUTURE 

As  we  look  back  through  the  ages  we  find  that  the 
story  of  democracy  is  thousands  of  years  old.  There 
has  been  a  gradual  but  irregular  progress.  The  thought 
of  mankind  has  climbed  slowly,  reaching  one  peak  after 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    317 

another,  but  at  times  it  has  slipped  back,  so  that  the 
gain  of  one  century  has  been  lost  in.  the  next.  The 
development  of  democracy  still  stretches,  unlimited, 
into  the  future. 

In  the  story  of  tribal  government,  At-o-tar-ho,  the 
Wizard,  represents  the  past  of  barbarism,  of  lawless- 
ness, of  torture  and  constant  warfare,  of  murder  unpun- 
ished, and  of  selfish  mastery.  Hi-a-wa-tha  represents 
the  high  standards  of  future  mankind.  In  his  prophet- 
ic sayings  there  is  the  simplest  and  purest  spirit  of 
order  and  harmony,  like  water  fresh  and  unsullied 
at  its  source. 

During  the  Age  of  Bronze,  men  have  not  yet  learned 
how  to  govern  themselves,  but  they  have  learned  how 
to  obey  their  kings.  They  trade  with  each  other,  and 
live  together  in  little  towns,  with  the  palace  of  the  king 
as  the  center  of  social  life.  In  the  story  of  Alcinous, 
monarchy  is  shown  at  its  best.  But  the  development 
of  personal  property  has  brought  with  it  the  problem  of 
riches  and  poverty.  There  is  danger  that  an  unjust 
king,  a  rich  and  therefore  a  powerful  man,  may  op- 
press his  subjects  by  demanding  too  much  tribute  from 
them,  and  so  become  a  tyrant. 

As  the  centuries  pass,  a  Greek  city-state  conquers 
tyranny  and  develops  democracy,  the  self-government 
of  the  many.  The  Athenians  reach,  during  the  Age  of 
Pericles,  a  high  peak  in  the  history  of  progress,  and 
their  direct  democracy  still  remains  to  us  in  some 
respects  a  model.  But  it  is  a  very  limited  democracy 
according  to  our  modern  ideals,  because  only  freemen 


318          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

are  allowed  to  vote  in  the  Assembly.  Women  and 
slaves  are  not  considered  citizens  in  Athens,  and  they 
are  treated  as  inferiors  in  the  law  courts. 

In  Athens,  as  everywhere,  democracy  is  only  suc- 
cessful when  the  people  choose  wise  leaders.  After  the 
death  of  Pericles,  the  citizens  of  Athens  voted  for  bad 
leaders  and  unwise  policies,  so  that  the  power  and 
glory  of  the  city  were  lessened.  Democracy  still  faces 
the  same  dangers,  and  so  its  success  must  always  be 
insecure.  Therefore,  a  good  citizen  must  always  be  on 
guard  to  defend  his  democracy  by  intelligently  choosing 
his  leaders  and  the  policies  that  they  are  to  carry  out. 

The  Romans  learn  much  from  Athenian  civilization, 
and  at  one  time  their  government  is  a  democracy. 
Their  great  Empire,  however,  develops  as  a, despotism. 
The  life  of  conquered  peoples  is  stifled,  and  Rome 
finally  becomes  the  mistress  of  a  dead  world,  as  a  great 
historian  has  said.  But  though  democracy  has  died  in 
one  branch  of  government,  the  executive,  it  is  still 
living  in  another  branch,  the  judicial.  Roman  lawyers 
introduce  the  Law  of  Humanity,  the  principle  that  all 
human  beings,  men,  women,  and  slaves,  are  equal 
under  the  law  of  nature.  The  spread  of  Christianity 
gives  aid  to  this  principle,  for  the  spirit  of  democracy 
is  a  part  of  the  Christian  religion. 

In  reading  of  the  customs  of  the  ancient  Norsemen, 
we  go  back  to  a  condition  of  half-savagery.  Though 
there  is  a  healthy,  sturdy  democracy  among  the 
Icelandic  freemen  at  their  Things,  there  is  heartless 
cruelty  to  thralls  among  the  Norsemen.  Manslaughters 


AN  AMERICAN  BOY  AND  DEMOCRACY    319 

are  common,  and  the  rule  of  justice  is  only  beginning 
to  replace  the  rule  of  might. 

During  the  Middle  Ages,  there  is  a  strange  mingling 
of  ancient  pagan  customs  and  Christianity,  of  mon- 
archy and  democracy,  and  there  is  a  constant  struggle 
for  progress.  The  principle  of  representative  govern- 
ment is  developed,  and  serfdom,  or  slavery,  comes  to  an 
end  in  England.  Thus  the  path  is  cleared  for  a  future 
democracy  purer  and  greater  than  that  of  Athens. 

In  the  seventeenth  century,  the  Pilgrim  Fathers 
struggle  for  liberty  of  conscience,  freedom  of  speech, 
and  freedom  of  the  press.  They  flee  from  England  for 
the  sake  of  liberty  of  conscience,  and  found  a  demo- 
cratic government  in  New  England,  which,  like  that 
of  Athens,  has  been  an  inspiration  to  the  world.  All 
men  are  treated  as  equals  among  them,  but  women 
take  no  part  in  government. 

After  the  American  Revolution,  a  Federal  Govern- 
ment is  established,  and  a  new  nation — the  United 
States — is  formed,  on  the  federal  principle.  Each  state 
retains  its  own  government  and  local  authority,  but 
all  the  states  together  form  one  union,  and  recognize 
the  authority  of  the  central  government:  e  pluribus, 
unum — out  of  the  many,  the  one. 

The  Civil  War  tested  the  authority  of  this  central 
government  and  it  stood  the  test,  victorious.  As  a  re- 
sult of  the  Civil  War,  slavery  was  abolished,  and  the 
right  to  vote  was  given  to  negroes. 

At  the  present  time,  women  have  been  given  the 
vote  in  the  United  States,  so  that  our  democracy  is  no 


320          THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 

longer  limited  to  one  half  of  humanity.  The  freedom 
of  women  marks  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  the 
progress  of  mankind. 

So  much  has  been  won  for  us  already. 

Now  the  nations  are  striving  to  create  an  interna- 
tional union  to  prevent  warfare  in  the  future.  The 
greatest  of  wars  came  to  an  end  in  November,  1918. 
It  caused  so  much  misery  to  all  the  peoples  who  took 
part  in  it  that  when  the  victorious  nations  came  to  lay 
down  the  terms  of  peace  to  the  defeated  nations,  they 
tried  to  do  more  than  this — they  tried  to  form  a  plan 
that  would  prevent  any  such  great  war  in  the  future. 
We  cannot  be  sure  how  this  plan  will  develop,  as  it  is 
only  in  its  beginning.  But  we  can  hope  at  least  that 
international  law  in  the  future  will  work  for  peace  and 
justice  between  nations,  as  government  has  worked 
for  peace  and  justice  between  men.  And  so  our  book 
ends,  as  it  began,  with  the  striving  for  a  Great  Peace. 
"We  shall  gather  up  the  causes  of  warfare  into  a 
bundle,"  said  Hi-a-wa-tha,  "and  throw  them  away 
from  the  earth." 

Hi-a-wa-tha  in  imagery,  described  fellow-feeling,  the 
source  of  justice  and  democracy,  when  he  said: 

"  They  will  take  one  another  by  the  hands  and  arms, 
they  will  have  their  minds  in  one  place ',  and  they  will  have 
but  one  head,  one  tongue,  and  one  blood  in  their  bodies. 

"It  may  be  that  after  the  passing  of  time,  some  man 
may  come  who  will  see  the  Great  White  Root,  and  then 
lift  his  hatchet  and  strike  at  it.  If  he  does  that,  blood 
will  flow  from  the  root  and  we  shall  all  feel  it." 


PRONUNCIATION  OF  PROPER  NAMES 


a,  as  in  ale;  a,  as  in  sen'ate;  a,  as  in  care;  a,  as  in  am;  2  as  in  fi'nal ;  a,  as  in  arm; 
a,  as  in  ask;  a,  as  in  all;  d,  as  in  so'fd;  e,  as  in  eve;  e,  as  in  e-vent';  e,  as  in  end; 
e,  as  in  fern ;  e,  as  in  re 'cent ;  I,  as  in  ice ;  i,  as  in  i-de'a ;  i,  as  in  ill ;  6,  as  in  old ;  6,  as 
in  6-bey ' ;  6,  as  in  6rb ;  6,  as  in  odd ;  o,  as  in  c#n-nect' ;  u,  as  in  use ;  u ,  as  in  u-nite'  ; 
u,  as  in  up;  u,  as  in  urn;  y,  as  in  pit'y;  60,  as  in  food;  60,  as  in  foot;  ou,  as  in 
out;  oi,  as  in  oil. 


CHAPTER  I 
TRIBAL  GOVERNMENT 

At-o-tar-ho  (at-5-tar'ho) 
Cayuga  (ka-yoo'gd) 
Cherokee  (cher'6-ke) 
Dek-a-na-wi-dah  (dek-d-na'wi-do) 
Hai-yo-wen-tha  (hi-yo-wen'tha) 
Hi-a-wa-tha  (hi'a-wa'thd) 
Huron  (hu'ron) 
Iroquois  (ir'6-kwoi') 
Mohawk  (mo'hak) 
Oneida  (6-ni'da) 
Onondaga  (6n-on-da'ga) 
Seneca  (sen'e-kd) 
Wyandot  (wl'an-dot) 


CHAPTER  II 
EARLY  MONARCHY 

Achilles  (o-kil'ez) 
Agamemnon  (ag'd-mem'non) 
Alcinous  (al-sin'6-us) 
Briseis  (bri-se'is) 
Calypso  (kd-lip'so) 
Charybdis  (kd-rib'dis) 
Circe  (sOr'se) 
Cyclops  (si'klops) 
Dicon  (di'kon) 


Heliodora  (he'li-6-do'rd) 
Ithaka  (ith'o-kd) 
Nausicaa  (na-sik'a-d) 
Odysseus  (6-dis'us) 
Patroclus  (pd-tro'kliis) 
Scylla  (sH'd) 
Strato  (stra'to) 

CHAPTER  III 
THE  DEMOCRACY  OF  ATHENS 

Artemis  (ar't£-mis) 
Chrysilla  (kri-sil'd) 
Cleandros  (kle-an'dros) 
Cleon  (kle'on) 
Pericles  (per'i-klez) 
Theodora  (the'6-do'rd) 
Xanthias  (zan'thi-as) 
Zeus  (zus) 

CHAPTER  IV 
THE  ROMAN  EMPIRE 

Caesar  (se'zdr) 
Domitian  (do-mish'an) 
Mediterranean  (med'I-ter-a'ne-an) 
Tarpeian  (tar-pe'y2n) 
Valerian  (va-le'ri-an) 
Vespasian  (ves-pa'zhi-an) 


321 


322 


THE  STORY  OF  DEMOCRACY 


CHAPTER  V 

ICELAND:   THE  NEIGHBORHOOD 
THING  AND  THE  ALL-THING 

Bergthora  (berg-tho'rd) 
Geir  (gar) 
Gizur  (gi-zobr') 
Gunnar  (goon'ndr) 
Hallgerda  (hal'ger-dd) 
Hauskuld  (hous'koolt) 
Hrut  (hrdot) 
Kolskegg  (kol'skeg) 
Nyal  (ny'al) 
Otkell  (ot'kel) 


CHAPTER  VI 
ENGLAND  IN  THE  MIDDLE  AGES 

Acre  (a'ker) 
Adriatic  (a'dre-at'ik) 
Berengaria  (ber'en-ga'ri-d) 
Coeur  de  Lion  (kur'  de  le'on) 
Cyprus  (si'prus) 
Godiva  (go-di'vd) 
Leofric  (le-6f'rik) 
Navarre  (nd-var') 
Saladin  (sard-din) 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  SETTLEMENT  OF  VIRGINIA 

Amidas  (am'i-das) 
Pocahontas  (po'kd-hon'tds) 
Powhatan  (pou  'hd-tan') 
Raleigh  (ra'li) 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  STORY  OF  THE  PILGRIMS 

Delftshaven  (delfs'ha'ven) 
Leyden  (li'den) 
Massasoit  (mas'd-soit) 
Oceanus  (o-se'd-nus) 
Priscilla  (pri-sil'ld) 

CHAPTER  IX 
THE  BUILDING  OF  THE  NATION* 

Abigail  (ab'i-gal) 
Delft  (delft) 
Grasse,  de  (de  gras') 
Lafayette,  de  (de  la'fa-yet') 
Rochambeau,  de  (de  ro'shan'bo'j 

CHAPTER  X 
AMERICA  TO-DAY 

Algonquin  (al-gon'km) 
Darius  (dd-ri'us) 
Lycidas  (lis'i-das) 
Mohican  (mo-he'kan) 
Roosevelt  (ro'ze-velt) 

CHAPTER  XI 
THE  NATIONAL  GOVERNMENT 
Potomac  (po-to'mdc) 

CHAPTER  XII 

STATE  AND  COUNTY  GOVERNMENT 
Holstein  (hol'stm) 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

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Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


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